Culture

Death of composer Syama Sastri

Syama Sastri, the eldest of the Trinity of Carnatic music, died in 1827.

Madras Club founded

Founded for Europeans only, the Madras Club is among the oldest gentlemen's clubs in India.

Death of composer Muthuswami Dikshitar

Muthuswami Dikshitar, one of the Trinity of Carnatic music, died at Ettayapuram on Deepavali day.

Death of Tyagaraja

Tyagaraja, the most celebrated composer of the Carnatic Trinity, died at Thiruvaiyaru on the banks of the Kaveri.

Swamikannu Vincent starts touring tent cinemas

Coimbatore's Swamikannu Vincent began showing films in tent cinemas in 1905 and opened the Variety Hall theatre in 1914.

R. Venkaiah opens the Gaiety cinema in Madras

Film pioneer Raghupathi Venkaiah Naidu built the Gaiety in 1912, one of the first permanent cinema theatres in Madras.

Abraham Pandithar's Tamil music conferences at Thanjavur

Abraham Pandithar set up the Sangeetha Vidhyalaya Mahajana Sangam, which held six music conferences between 1912 and 1914.

Keechaka Vadham, the first South Indian film

R. Nataraja Mudaliar's silent film Keechaka Vadham, the first film made in South India, was released in 1917 or 1918.

Saraswathi Mahal Library opened to the public

The manuscript library of the Thanjavur Maratha rulers, enriched by Serfoji II, was opened to the public in 1918.

Ananda Vikatan launched

Ananda Vikatan started life as a Tamil monthly, and S. S. Vasan acquired and relaunched it in 1928.

Kalidas, the first Tamil talkie, released

Released in 1931, H. M. Reddy's Kalidas was the first Tamil film with sound and opened the era of Tamil talkies.

Proposal to rename sadir as Bharatanatyam

E. Krishna Iyer moved a resolution at the Madras Music Academy to rename the dance form sadir as Bharatanatyam.

Manikkodi literary weekly launched

Launched in Madras, the Tamil literary weekly Manikkodi gave modern Tamil short fiction a platform.

Modern Theatres studio founded at Salem

T. R. Sundaram started Modern Theatres in Salem, a studio that went on to make more than 150 films.

Rukmini Devi's first public Bharatanatyam performance

At the Theosophical Society's Diamond Jubilee convention, Rukmini Devi Arundale danced Bharatanatyam in public for the first time.

Central Studios founded in Coimbatore

Coimbatore industrialists including B. Rangaswamy Naidu and Swamikannu Vincent set up Central Studios for South Indian film production.

Sathi Leelavathi released, M. G. Ramachandran's debut

Ellis R. Dungan's Sathi Leelavathi was released, marking the film debuts of M. G. Ramachandran and other future stars.

Chintamani runs for a year in a single theatre

Starring M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, Chintamani was the first Tamil film to stay a full year in one theatre.

Sevasadanam released, M. S. Subbulakshmi's film debut

K. Subramanyam's reformist film Sevasadanam was released, marking the screen debut of M. S. Subbulakshmi.

S. S. Vasan founds Gemini Studios

S. S. Vasan acquired a studio in Madras and established Gemini Studios, which became one of India's major film studios.

Kalki magazine launched

Writer R. Krishnamurthy (Kalki) and T. Sadasivam launched the Tamil weekly Kalki, which serialised popular historical novels.

Daily Thanthi founded at Madurai

S. P. Adithanar founded the Tamil daily Dina Thanthi in Madurai; it became the largest-circulating Tamil newspaper.

Sivakavi released

Sivakavi, a Pakshiraja Films production made at Central Studios in Coimbatore with M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, reached cinemas.

Kalki begins Sivagamiyin Sapatham

Kalki Krishnamurthy began serialising Sivagamiyin Sapatham, a historical novel set in the Pallava period.

Haridas released

Haridas, a Tamil film with M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar in the lead, played at one Madras theatre across three Diwalis in a row, a record that stood for years.

AVM Productions founded

A. V. Meiyappan founded AVM Productions, first working from Karaikudi during the war before moving to Madras.

Meera released with M. S. Subbulakshmi

Meera, directed by Ellis R. Dungan with M. S. Subbulakshmi in the lead and a script by Kalki, reached screens; a Hindi version came later.

Sivaji Ganesan wins Best Actor at Afro-Asian Film Festival

For Veerapandiya Kattabomman, Sivaji Ganesan was named Best Actor at Cairo's Afro-Asian Film Festival, the first such win by an Indian actor.

M. S. Subbulakshmi sings at the United Nations

On UN Day 1966, Carnatic vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi sang at the United Nations General Assembly, the first Indian to do so.

MGR wins the Bharat Award for Best Actor

M. G. Ramachandran won the national Best Actor (Bharat) award for Rickshawkaran, the first South Indian actor to receive it.

Akilan becomes the first Tamil writer to win the Jnanpith

Novelist Akilan received the Jnanpith Award for his novel Chithirappavai, the first for a Tamil writer.

Television arrives in Madras with Doordarshan Kendra

Doordarshan began television broadcasts from Madras, the first TV station in South India.

Annakili released; Ilaiyaraaja's film debut

Ilaiyaraaja's first film score, for Annakili, carried rural folk music into the Tamil cinema mainstream.

Bharathiraja's 16 Vayathinile released

Bharathiraja's first film, 16 Vayathinile, with Kamal Haasan, Sridevi and Rajinikanth, moved Tamil cinema from studio sets to real village settings.

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.

Rajinikanth's Baashha released

Baashha, Suresh Krissna's gangster drama with Rajinikanth as an auto-rickshaw driver hiding his past, opened and became one of the actor's most famous films.

Sivaji Ganesan receives the Dadasaheb Phalke Award

Sivaji Ganesan received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the top film honour in India.

M. S. Subbulakshmi becomes the first musician awarded the Bharat Ratna

Madurai-born Carnatic singer M. S. Subbulakshmi was the first musician to be given the Bharat Ratna, the country's top civilian award.

Rajinikanth's Muthu becomes a hit in Japan

Shown in Japan as 'Muthu: The Dancing Maharaja', the 1995 Tamil film earned more there than any other Indian film, holding that record for 24 years.

First Madras Day celebration

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

Chennai Super Kings win their first IPL title

Founded in 2008, the Chennai Super Kings defeated Mumbai Indians in the final to take their first Indian Premier League title.