A metro is designed around movement, its stations serving as points of passage in a city that rarely has the luxury of standing still. Yet in Chennai, the network is beginning to accommodate a different relationship with public space, as commuters find themselves drawn into live performances along their daily routes. There is a certain whimsy in the idea of bringing music into a commute more often associated with packed carriages, missed trains and the daily scramble for a seat. With Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) actively facilitating these musical encounters, the network is acquiring a cultural life that extends beyond the journey itself.
For Keerthivasan Raghuraman of Office Gaana, the metro has long offered possibilities beyond commuting. “When I am stressed out, my girlfriend and I sometimes go on metro dates. We just take the metro from the airport to Wimco Nagar and then come back. Chennai is so beautiful from the metro,” he smiles.
His relationship with the network extends to performing on it, too. “Even before I was a part of Office Gaana, we used to do a lot of live music performances in public spaces, and CMRL was one of the partners we worked with. Initially, I used to take my guitar, go around metro stations and busk there. We had permissions, and people would come and enjoy different kinds of art,” he recalls.
For Senthil Raj of On the Streets of Chennai, which organises performances in public spaces, the appeal lies in watching a commuter’s hurried trajectory give way to an unexpected encounter with music. Unlike a conventional concert, where audiences arrive with the intention of listening, a station performance catches people in the middle of their everyday routines. “Suddenly, people look at us, smile and show a sense of surprise. They walk towards us and just stand there. They were walking in such a hurry, but they decided to stay back for half an hour, an hour or even an hour and a half. That is something very fascinating to see,” he shares.
Performing at floor level, with audiences gathering around rather than watching from rows of seats, changes the relationship between musician and listener. “You connect to the audience very well. You know what works and what doesn’t work as a performer. If somebody is walking by, they may spend two minutes watching your show. If you are able to make them stay longer, that is something we subconsciously pick up as performers, and you see the smiles on their faces. That itself feels very fulfilling,” he adds.
The idea has travelled beyond station platforms, too. For Metro-vil Madras Day in August this year, Super Chennai collaborated with CMRL to turn a moving train into a concert venue, with Office Gaana performing aboard a special service that travelled from Koyambedu towards Chennai airport and back. Registrations reportedly closed within 30 minutes of opening, with thousands applying for a place on the ride.
For Keerthivasan, performing aboard the train was unlike a conventional concert. “It was very intimate. You get to meet random strangers who don’t pay you anything. You don’t owe them anything, but you owe them love. You owe them the celebration of how people from different backgrounds in the city come together to celebrate something, which is Madras,” he says.
For Ranjeeth Rathod, managing director of Super Chennai, the initiative grew from a larger question about how the city could create more opportunities for people to gather. “How do we bring that fellowship together? That was the question we had in mind,” he says, pointing to the limited availability of public entertainment spaces in the city. The metro offered a way to bring people together through an experience woven into everyday urban life. “Is the metro just for commuting? Yes. But if we can add layers of fun and frolic, why not?” Ranjeeth questions.
Commuting remains the network’s central purpose, but a train that doubles as a concert venue or a station that invites people to pause for a song adds a vibrant facet to the daily journey. In a city whose cultural life spills out of auditoriums into streets and neighbourhoods, the metro is becoming another place to gather, listen and encounter Chennai anew.
Email: anoushkakundu@newindianexpress.com
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