Adapting to Life in Chennai: A Bangalorean Girl's Journey and Experiences

Discover the challenges and cultural adjustments faced by a Bangalore girl in Chennai. From language barriers to dress codes, explore the differences and similarities in this relocation journey.

Being a girl who lived and loved Bangalore, from the day I entered the office around 5 years ago, it was tough to accept when I found out I was being transferred to Chennai, even though I knew about it. It was a bit sad because going to Chennai was never in my plans. But hey, life happens, and I had to go with the flow.

At first, I faced quite a few challenges. The biggest one was the idea of going to Chennai. I had never really considered going there because of my memories from a decade ago when I visited during the rainy season. The roads were flooded, and we had to wade through knee-deep water due to poor drainage. Those memories always stuck with me, and I had some negative thoughts about Chennai.

I always imagined dirty roads with papers flying around, based on my first experience at the bus terminal in 2010, which was the main entry point to Chennai.

But this time, when I arrived in Chennai, it felt a little different. Apart from the weather, everything else seemed pretty similar to Bangalore, maybe because of the long lockdown period I spent in my hometown for the past 2 years. Or maybe it's because I got to see the city side of Chennai this time. Speaking of challenges, I often felt confused and a bit dizzy.

In Chennai, we don't sweat as easily as we do in Bangalore. Sweating without any physical exertion and getting dehydrated easily is pretty common here. We start feeling a bit dizzy, but drinking water helps with that. It's all because of the high moisture in the air.

Another challenge is the language and culture, especially the language. In Bangalore, even if we spoke different languages, when someone new arrived, we would always strike up a conversation, no matter their experience level. It's a bit different here. Until someone introduces us, no one really takes the initiative to talk, even after a week or more. It feels a bit strange when we have neighbors sitting next to us who don't even crack a smile or say hi, although we don't expect them to.

Language is the biggest barrier, and that's the truth. In Bangalore, with so many languages around, we have English as a common language, and we don't mix other languages with it to ensure understanding among people who speak different languages. It's the opposite here. The common language is only Tamil, even if you know the other person speaks a different language.

Here, we often use "Tanglish" (Tamil + English) while speaking in English. Tamil words tend to slip in. I had a hard time understanding both languages together, and it's challenging to mix them while speaking, especially for someone like me who always had friends who spoke a mix of languages and mostly heard pure English.

Hearing Telugu or Kannada brings me joy. After being a Bangalorean for 5 years, it's easy for us to understand and speak Telugu and Kannada. But hearing these languages in Chennai isn't that easy, as I mentioned earlier, because Tamil is the only common language for people of all mother tongues.

Now, let's talk about the dress code. You might not have experienced this in Bangalore, but even wearing sleeveless clothes or dresses with small holes, which were popular during the corona vaccine period and called "injection dresses," are not considered appropriate for the office dress code here.

One good thing about Chennai is that since everyone knows Tamil, there are many groups or "gangs," and in almost all of them, there are jokes related to movies to tease people. If you introduce yourself, people are usually willing to help. I'm not sure if it's my company's policy to hire only helpful individuals, but it sure seems that way.