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First Madras Day celebration

· Chennai

First Madras Day celebration
RaviMy Tea Kadai, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Madras Day, held each 22 August, was first celebrated in Chennai, recalling the 1639 acquisition of the land where the city developed.

Journalists Vincent D'Souza and Sashi Nair, together with historian S. Muthiah, came up with Madras Day in 2004. It falls on 22 August, generally accepted as the day in 1639 when East India Company factors Andrew Cogan and Francis Day bought Madraspatnam. Around five events made up the first edition; over time the programme of talks, walks, quizzes and exhibitions stretched to a week and then a whole month. The celebration has helped raise public interest in Chennai's history and heritage.

Related events

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    1. 18 Aug 1928ChennaiCulture

      Madras Music Academy founded

      The Music Academy was founded in Madras following the 1927 Congress session and became a leading institution for Carnatic music.

  2. 1977

    1. 14 Dec 1977 to 24 Dec 1977ChennaiLiterature

      First Madras Book Fair held

      Organised by the Booksellers and Publishers Association of South India, the first Madras Book Fair later developed into the yearly Chennai Book Fair.

  3. 2003

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      Rainwater harvesting made mandatory for all buildings

      After severe drought, a 2003 ordinance required every building in Tamil Nadu to install rainwater harvesting structures by 31 August.

  4. 2005

    1. Nov 2005 to Dec 2005ChennaiDisaster

      2005 Chennai floods and relief camp stampedes

      Heavy north-east monsoon rain flooded Chennai, and two stampedes at relief distribution camps killed more than 50 people.

  5. 2007

    1. Jan 2007ChennaiCulture

      First Chennai Sangamam folk arts festival

      Chennai Sangamam, an open-air festival of Tamil folk and traditional arts around Pongal, was held for the first time with state government backing.

  6. 2008

    1. 29 Jan 2008 to 2011ChennaiCulture

      Tamil New Year moved to the first day of Thai

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