This is almost like my first visit to southern India. I have visited Bangalore before but its like any other metro city with an urban setup, with people pouring in from all parts of the country. But arriving at Chennai was different. First being greeted by sounds of unfamiliar tongues and those roving eyes when you tell them you cannot speak the same language. The raised eyebrows and those flashing smiles. Then, the larger than life movie posters adorning the walls of the city featuring actors which audience revers as gods. And yes the smells. The smell of fresh gajra wafting in the air gives your nose a pleasant relief from the omnipresent smell of sticky coconut oil and sweat. One cannot help the sweat here as its really hot and humid. At the bus stop, after running around in circles, I managed to reach the platform that bore the promise of a bus that would take me to Pondicherry. After some waiting the bus appeared in a distance and even before it could touch the platform, men had already alighted the bus and grabbed seats for themselves and their kin. Well thankfully I also found a seat because that journey which is supposed to take 3 hours took 5.5 hours. Its in that crowded bus that I fully appreciated the use of gajra by women.