nungambakkam

crescent
on sterling road
puttu and kadalacurry

kodak studio
piano sounds
drifting in from
nearby music square

haddows road
an old favourite
with its big trees

and the red warmth
of oxford bookstore
familiar college road,
alliance, the irezumi board

kids hanging out
at ispahani, shopping at
khader nawaz khan road

in the centre
of all the traffic,
the maddening one-ways,
the buildings, big and little

rises,with humbling grace,
the beautiful white
loyola spire, embracing
the chennai sky.