Treasure hunt through Chennai's hidden heritage sites draws 40 participants to lesser-known landmarks

Native Madras Treasure Hunt guides teams through Triplicane, Mylapore landmarks

About 40 participants fanned out across Chennai in pairs to decode clues and complete challenges at cultural sites that rarely feature on the city's tourist circuit.

The Hindu's Made of Chennai treasure hunt, titled 'Native Madras Treasure Hunt' and presented by Sunfeast Supermilk, began and ended at The Hindu office on Anna Salai. The route spanned checkpoints in Triplicane, Mylapore, Mount Road, and Chintadripet, requiring teams to visit nine culturally significant locations and collect stickers.

Why these sites matter

Organisers deliberately steered away from high-footfall venues to spotlight lesser-known heritage. "When we usually conduct treasure hunts in Chennai, they are focused on popular locations, like Spencer's Plaza or Higginbotham's. This time, we wanted to showcase places that are comparatively less explored," said Vijay Prabhakar, curator of the treasure hunt and a member of Nexus Consulting.

The Old Curiosity Shop exemplified this approach, a place many Chennaiites pass but seldom enter, Prabhakar noted.

The course

Participants navigated to Bharathiyar Ninaivu Illam, the cattle shed near the Kannagi Statue, Poompuhar, The Old Curiosity Shop, and the Parrot House before returning to Anna Salai.

Winners Samyuktha R. and Sashank Balaji credited strong route optimisation for their success. "The clues were conceptualised very well. We had to optimise the route, and that was the challenge that we faced even before we started the hunt," said Samyuktha. The hunt blended physical stamina with problem-solving, she added, as teams tackled puzzles and challenges at iconic city landmarks that kept them moving.

Source: The Hindu