August 18, 2007

A T-shirt for Chennai

I hope the Tiruppur hub has good news for us.
Scheduled to arrive in the city on Monday is a pack of the all-new Namma Chennai T-shirt.
And I am hoping that many die-hard folks of this city will like it.
The T-shirt for our city idea has everything to do with the 'Madras Day' which is rolling out now.
We chose to have a contest to create a design for a Chennai T-shirt and last year, a design student, Shreyas, won the prize for her effort.
We then invited this bright, young girl to work further on the basic design and if you check out the web site - www.themadrasday.in - you will get a peek at Shreyas' new design which our well wishers in Tiruppur have promised to deliver as finished product.
Going by the many e-mails that are flowing in - the mail ID is madrasday@yahoo.com - Shreyas' design seems to have caught the eye of young people.
One diehard resident doubled into our office this week in anticipation of the new T-shirt and though disappointed, ( the new Tee is due for an official release on Wednesday, August 22) decided to buy the 2006 Chennai T-shirt which sports a large kolam.
Well, in keeping with the spirit of 'Madras Day', which is to keep the community at its heart, we have not invited Trisha or Madhavan or Anu Hassan to launch the Tee.
It will be launched at a contest for city schools at a hall in Luz next Wednesday.
The first order is for 100 Tees ( each costs Rs.100) and if the lot disappears in a week, it may well become a collector's item because we may not produce them all over again ( The Tiruppur folks say our order should be nothing less than 5,555 numbers!)
The response to the 'Madras Day' events is heartening.
It is good to see the city's community responding positively.
Ashok Leyland's PR and Communications department called to say it will freely lend its special bus specially designed for children for all 'Madras Day' events in which children are involved.
So, on Monday, the bus will carry 30 children from Kalaimagal Vidyalaya in Royapuram, to four schools in central and south Madras on a yatra to present glimpses of north Madras by way of villupattu and story-telling in Thamizh.
'Madras Day' is all about the city and its people.
And I am hoping that a band performing at Sunday's Freedom Jam Rock Show at the YMCA Nandanam campus will dedicate an original song to this city.
Or at least inspire, like Shreyas was, some one to write a song on this city: Madras that is Chennai.

1 comment:

P said...

A very commendable effort by your whole team Sir,
Can`t you also make the T-Shirts in dark colors too as
White -thanks to our Chennaipattnam water turns a dirty
pale yellow after a couple of months.

I feel the product will also be lapped up by NRI who belong to
Chennai !st! and would be proud to be seen in them when
abroad.

www.teeshirts.in