Ambattur OT – the many stories behind the name
Around a year ago I embarked on a project of documenting Chennai by PIN code. I gave up writing in detail somewhere around Chennai 600025 as it was too exhausting. And then I decided to do them as one-minute reels on Instagram. That has met with good response, and I am now nearing Chennai 600060. Writing (talking really) about the old areas is easy enough but the new ones are challenging, for the available documentation on their past is negligible. That anyway is the real purpose of such an exercise.
Invariably, the history of Chennai place names remains the most elusive. And those who watch the reels tend to repeat the usual myths that keep circulating on WhatsApp. There was an interesting exchange on the origin of the name Ambattur. A follower had it that the site marks the 51st of the Shakti Peethams dedicated to the Goddess, which are all over India, and hence the name Ambattur (from Aimbathi Onru for 51 in Tamil). I asked for the whereabouts of the temple at present and was rewarded with an answer – it is the Vaishnavi shrine at nearby Tirumullaivoyal. And that had me smiling, it is easy enough to locate a convenient temple anywhere in the city.
