STARVED

 A better tomorrow awaits.

A billboard at every step of the way:

A not-so-gentle reminder all along the length and breadth -

With a new portion getting added by the day: making it Greater Chennai!

Madras Nalla Madras is passé; 

With nostalgia just existing in e-commerce merchandise : magnets, tees and quick eats:

Satyam Pop-corn is a ‘souvenir snack’ like Thirunelveli halwa.

Every nook and cranny sells things that no longer belong to the local flavour.

Dotted with eateries that beg to establish their identity from another TN district.

The population on OMR - migrant:

Each one missing their native cuisine

Lo and behold, one restaurant after the other, ostensibly claiming to be either from Salem, Dindigul, Kovilpatti, Ambur and everything else, except Chennai.

Catering to unruly midnight cravings; dictated by an offer or two;

Made available in buckets - addressing the starved gluttons.

Justified by feel good factors; raising dopamine : secreting the so-called oxytocin - temporarily after all.

For when reality meets them, each one is browsing through an offer to kill time 

As they wait for a better tomorrow.

When the tomorrow does arrive, it connects better, yes:

For people to get closer to hospitals and therapy centres with serpentine bills;

An invisible tax that’s paid for a better tomorrow:

A compromise on fresh air, water and good health - above all peace of mind

Something that tier 2 and 3 cities offer for free.

Pure Luxury - where you can live in the present; instead of awaiting a better tomorrow.