Lynwood With its Palatial Grounds and Colonial Grandeur Evokes Charming Memories of a Carefree Childhood

chillibreeze writer — Sreelata Menon

When India attained independence Sir C. Madhavan Nair, a Judge of the Privy Council in London, returned home to Madras. He and my grandmother had built a house on Kodambakkam High Road, one of the city’s main arterial roads, in the hope of making it their permanent place of abode. The house was set amidst wood apple and tamarind trees, colorful bougainvilleas, jasmine and mogra bushes and all the flora and fauna that are exclusive to Madras. It was palatial by any standards, standing regally with its head and shoulders above any other in a compound of some acres and more. They called it ‘Lynwood’. For the locals, however, it was known simply as “judge thotam” (judge’s grounds).

Growing up at Lynwood

Lynwood was a lovely house befitting the status and dignity of Sir Chettur Madhavan and Lady Madhavan Nair and we, their three grand children, grew up there; in fits and starts, in short spells and long, whenever the Government of India, to which our father owed allegiance, decreed it!

It was awash with massive verandahs and large terraces. ‘Four corners’ was a game we could play there with immense ease, tiring our long-suffering nannies. Its long and well defined drive way enabled learning to ride bicycles and later on as we grew up, driving. While its tennis courts obliged us to play tennis, its sprawling greens enabled us to roam far and free! On party nights Lynwood sparkled, transformed into a veritable fairyland!

The sprawling compound was taken care of by the keeper, a tall spindly chief ‘thotakaran’ (gardener) who tirelessly and selflessly kept the grounds and the gardens going!The kitchens built away from the house needed at least four men to transport the steaming food to our table. Dinner was always at 7.30 pm for us children and we were usually banished thereafter to bed. It was an unwritten rule that we could be seen on occasion, but never heard! Yet when the elders entertained we always found ingenious ways of watching by hanging from the terraces or hiding behind and under landings, or even through the banisters till we were invariably spotted and told to get lost. And it was easy to get lost. Running wild or making life generally miserable for our minders came naturally to us. To our mother’s perpetual consternation and our knowing delight, there was a continuous procession of helps and tutors who never lasted very long. School as far as we were concerned was a big no-no, leading to a constant string of feigned illnesses! We grew up ‘undisciplined and uncontrollable’, as we were wont to be called then. Though in hind sight, I believe the sheer size of the house helped in circumventing authority! That is, till grandmother decided to divide the compound into plots, fill up the ponds, build roads and sell.

Sir Madhavan Nair Colony

Thus Sir Madhavan Nair Colony was born. Today this colony is one of Madras’ (now renamed Chennai) foremost residential areas. It boasts of the well known Ayyappan temple, built on land given free by Grandmother, and is home to many Kollywood actors and actresses. Our neighbor, far away, also followed suit and his patch of land became Mahalingapuram!!

When Grandfather died Grandmother decided to shift and put Lynwood up for sale. It was bought by a Trust who wanted to develop it but ran it as a college because they found it would cost more to knock it down! Apparently a white elephant now, they didn’t quite know what to do with it!

Recently I took my husband and boys to show them the place almost thirty years after I had left it. Despite the surroundings being in shambles and confusion, Lynwood, looking a lot worse for the wear, was shabby but still proud. She was still awesome, plaster and cement patches, chipped floors and walls notwithstanding. Her once inspiring verandahs and rooms had been converted into counters and cubicles! Now, there were black and white nameplates and instructions. There were bathrooms within bathrooms and rooms within rooms. There were people and people just about everywhere.

Chaos and confusion!

All the postmen on that beat had gathered there! It was payday and yes, Lynwood, once our home, had become a post office! It was now the Nungambakkam Main Post Office, one of Chennai’s more prominent post offices!! Like so many of its ilk, Lynwood too had now become a dispensable dilapidated relic of a not so long forgotten past!

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—About our writer: Sreelata writes for Chillibreeze

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