The Hindu Madraspatinam Photo Archive Exhibit showcases the city that was

Mount Road in the early 1940s, the AIR office in East Nook, the streets of Kotwal Chavadi in 1960, Mahatma Gandhi standing at the entrance of his third class coach in 1946, a model of the Ripon Building presented to Queen Elizabeth II. The Hindu's Madraspatinam Photo Archive Exhibit which will be on display at Chennai Citi Centre till August 29, tells visual stories of a time when Chennai was part of the Madras Presidency and its evolution into a metropolis. The exhibition is not just to celebrate Madras Day (August 22) but to remember the city as it used to be.

Curious crowds gathered around the stall browsing through the pictures, reminiscing the past that they were a part of or in awe of the changes that the city has gone through over the years. Lesser cars, more crowds, a barren Anna Nagar that had just begun to come up, a beach that offered people a few moments of respite from the heat, policemen dressed in khakhi shorts, white shirts and wide-brimmed hats, Madras' famed dog squad and the different leaders who have made their mark on the city's rich history.

It is a peep into the past and the story of a city that has just turned 372 years old.