Parakkum Rayil by Aparna Padmanabhan

Aparna Padmanabhan is a self-taught artist working out of Chennai. She is currently working with acrylics on board, delving into the customary subjects, techniques and metaphors of traditional Indian Art, especially the Kerala Murals and Newari Tangkas. She has her own studio, “Mallika”, in Chennai, where she employs ten girls who make quilts, candles, and other accessories for sale. Aparna is also a freelance copywriter & editor for the Times Group and other leading advertising agencies, and an interior and architectural designer. In her spare time, she teaches design and art.

Few people know it, but Chennai is up there with the rest of them. I am talking about the Mass Rapid Transit System [at least, that’s what I think MRTS stands for].

First announced very, very, many years ago, the MRTS has been a long while in the making. It was initially just an occasional update in the newspapers, like most other civic projects. I had been wowed by San Fransisco’s BART over two decades ago, and wondered how this would match up.