Editing Chennai (section)

=== Architecture ===
{{Main|Architecture of Chennai}}
{{See also|List of tallest buildings in Chennai|Heritage structures in Chennai}}
[[File:Tiruvallikeni1.jpg|thumb|[[Parthasarathy Temple]] is one of the oldest buildings in the city]]

With the history of Chennai dating back centuries, the architecture of Chennai ranges in a wide chronology. The oldest buildings in the city date from the 6th to 8th centuries CE, which include the [[Kapaleeshwarar Temple]] in [[Mylapore]] and the [[Parthasarathy Temple]] in [[Triplicane]], built in the [[Dravidian architecture]] encompassing various styles developed during the reigns of different empires.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kamath|first=Rina|title=Chennai|year=2000|publisher=Orient Longman Limited|location=Chennai|isbn=978-8-12501-378-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bw2vDg2fTrMC&pg=PA31|pages=31–33|access-date=8 December 2023|archive-date=29 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240629140435/https://books.google.com/books?id=bw2vDg2fTrMC&pg=PA31#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> In [[Dravidian architecture]], the [[Hindu temples]] consisted of large [[mantapa]]s with gate-pyramids called ''[[gopuram]]s'' in quadrangular enclosures that surround the temple.<ref>{{cite book|last= Fergusson|first= James|title= History of Indian and Eastern Architecture|orig-date= 1910|edition= 3rd|year= 1997|publisher=Low Price Publications|location= New Delhi|page= 309}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Francis D.K.|last= Ching| year= 2007|title= A Global History of Architecture| publisher=John Wiley and Sons|location=New York|isbn=978-0-47126-892-5|page= 762|display-authors=etal}}</ref> The Gopuram, a monumental tower usually ornate at the entrance of the temple forms a prominent feature of [[Koil]]s and whose origins can be traced back to the [[Pallava art and architecture|Pallavas]] who built the group of monuments in [[Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram|Mamallapuram]].<ref>{{cite book|first=James G.|last=Lochtefeld|title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M|url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc0000loch|url-access=registration|year=2002|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-82393-179-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc0000loch/page/n405 399]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/249|title=Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram|publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre|access-date=3 April 2022|archive-date=2 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191202145914/http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/249|url-status=live}}</ref> The associated ''[[Agraharam]]'' architecture, which consists of traditional row houses can still be seen in the areas surrounding the temples.<ref>{{cite news|last=Sujatha|first=R.|title=Agraharam – time virtually stands still here|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|location=Chennai|date=29 April 2012|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/history-and-culture/agraharam-time-virtually-stands-still-here/article3367816.ece|access-date=28 December 2022|archive-date=20 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230320191553/https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/history-and-culture/agraharam-time-virtually-stands-still-here/article3367816.ece|url-status=live}}</ref> Chennai has the second highest number of heritage buildings in the country.<ref>{{cite news|last=Ravishankar|first=Sandhya|title=No fire safety norms at Chennai heritage buildings|work=IBN Live|location=Chennai|publisher=CNN-IBN|date=6 September 2007|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/no-fire-safety-norms-at-chennai-heritage-buildings/48155-3-1.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130103111402/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/no-fire-safety-norms-at-chennai-heritage-buildings/48155-3-1.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 January 2013|access-date=28 December 2012}}</ref>

[[File:Parrys Corner, Chennai, India.jpg|thumb|left|[[Parry's Corner]], one of the oldest business areas lined up with [[Art Deco]] buildings]]

With the [[Mugal Empire|Mugals]] influence in mediaeval times and the [[British Empire|British]] later, the city saw a rise in a blend of [[Hindu]], [[Islamic]] and [[Gothic revival]] styles, resulting in the distinct [[Indo-Saracenic]] architecture.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Metcalfe|first=Thomas R.|title=A Tradition Created: Indo-Saracenic Architecture under the Raj|journal=History Today|volume=32|issue=9|url=http://www.historytoday.com/thomas-r-metcalfe/tradition-created-indo-saracenic-architecture-under-raj|access-date=28 December 2012|archive-date=18 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618230153/https://www.historytoday.com/thomas-r-metcalfe/tradition-created-indo-saracenic-architecture-under-raj|url-status=live}}</ref> The architecture for several institutions followed the Indo-Saracenic style with the [[Chepauk Palace]] designed by [[Paul Benfield]] amongst the first Indo-Saracenic buildings in India.<ref>{{cite web|title=Indo-saracenic Architecture|work=Henry Irwin, Architect in India, 1841–1922|publisher=higman.de|url=http://www.higman.de/Henry%20Irwin/indo-saracenic.htm|access-date=28 December 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200730131008/http://www.higman.de/Henry%20Irwin/indo-saracenic.htm|archive-date=30 July 2020}}</ref> Other buildings in the city from the era designed in this style of architecture include [[Fort St. George]] (1640), [[Amir Mahal]] (1798), [[Government Museum, Chennai|Government Museum]] (1854), [[University of Madras#Senate House|Senate House of the University of Madras]] (1879), [[Victoria Public Hall]] (1886), [[Madras High Court]] (1892), [[Bharat Insurance Building]] (1897), [[Ripon Building]] (1913), [[College of Engineering, Guindy|College of Engineering]] (1920) and [[Southern Railway headquarters, Chennai|Southern Railway headquarters]] (1921).<ref>{{cite web|last=Jeyaraj|first=George J.|title=Indo Saracenic Architecture in Channai|publisher=CMDA|url=http://www.cmdachennai.gov.in/pdfs/seminar_heritage_buildings/Indo_Saracenic_Architecture_in_Chennai.pdf|access-date=28 December 2012|archive-date=25 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210725063408/http://www.cmdachennai.gov.in/pdfs/seminar_heritage_buildings/Indo_Saracenic_Architecture_in_Chennai.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:LIC_building.jpg|thumb|[[LIC Building]] was the tallest building in the country when completed in 1959]]

Gothic revival-style buildings include the [[Chennai Central]] and [[Chennai Egmore]] railway stations. The [[Santhome Church]], which was originally built by the Portuguese in 1523 and is believed to house the remains of the [[Apostles in the New Testament|apostle]] [[Thomas the Apostle|St. Thomas]], was rebuilt in 1893, in [[neo-Gothic]] style.<ref>{{cite web|title=Santhome Cathedral|url=https://www.tamilnadutourism.tn.gov.in/destinations/santhome-cathedral-and-basilica|access-date=28 December 2022|publisher=Tamil Nadu tourism|archive-date=30 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130204928/https://www.tamilnadutourism.tn.gov.in/destinations/santhome-cathedral-and-basilica|url-status=live}}</ref> By the early 20th century, the [[art deco]] made its entry upon the city's urban landscape with buildings in [[George Town, Chennai|George Town]] including the United India building (presently housing [[Life Insurance Corporation of India|LIC]]) and the Burma Shell building (presently the Chennai House), both built in the 1930s, and the Dare House built in 1940 examples of this architecture.<ref>{{cite news|title=Art Deco Style Remains, But Elements Missing|date=2 September 2014|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2014/sep/02/art-deco-style-remains-but-elements-missing-655242.html|newspaper=[[The New Indian Express]]d|access-date=28 December 2022|archive-date=8 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208132502/https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2014/sep/02/Art-Deco-Style-Remains-But-Elements-Missing-655242.html|url-status=live}}</ref> After [[Partition of India|Independence]], the city witnessed a rise in [[Modernism]], and the completion of the [[LIC Building]] in 1959, the tallest building in the country at that time, marked the transition from lime-and-brick construction to concrete columns.<ref name="Look">{{cite news|title=Chennai looks to the skies|date=31 October 2014|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/homes-and-gardens/Five-years-after-the-CMDA-allowed-buildings-to-go-above-60-metres-Chennai%E2%80%99s-skyline-finally-begins-to-look-up-finds-Vishal-Menon/article60348870.ece|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|access-date=28 December 2022|archive-date=8 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208132503/https://www.thehindu.com/features/homes-and-gardens/Five-years-after-the-CMDA-allowed-buildings-to-go-above-60-metres-Chennai%E2%80%99s-skyline-finally-begins-to-look-up-finds-Vishal-Menon/article60348870.ece|url-status=live}}</ref>

The presence of the [[Doppler weather radar|weather radar]] at the [[Chennai Port]] prohibited the construction of buildings taller than 60&nbsp;m around a radius of 10&nbsp;km till 2009.<ref>{{cite news|last=Koshy|first=Jacob P.|title=Doppler radar may put cap on building heights|newspaper=Livemint|location=New Delhi|date=13 December 2007|url=https://www.livemint.com/Industry/OODRIEHbh9UFiYHBvNgaJP/Doppler-radar-may-put-cap-on-building-heights.html|access-date=28 December 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224134258/https://www.livemint.com/Industry/OODRIEHbh9UFiYHBvNgaJP/Doppler-radar-may-put-cap-on-building-heights.html|archive-date=24 February 2021}}</ref><ref name="Look"/> This resulted in the central business district expanding horizontally, unlike other metropolitan cities, while the peripheral regions began experiencing vertical growth with the construction of taller buildings with the tallest building at {{convert|161|m}}.<ref>{{cite news|title=Living in a city within a city: How is SPR City redefining the residential market?|newspaper=[[The Times of India]]|location=Chennai|date=30 May 2019|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/living-in-a-city-within-a-city-how-is-spr-city-redefining-the-residential-market/articleshow/67414866.cms|access-date=9 September 2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200105115119/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/living-in-a-city-within-a-city-how-is-spr-city-redefining-the-residential-market/articleshow/67414866.cms|archive-date=5 January 2020}}</ref>