The Hindu Made of Chennai treasure hunt takes participants on a city-wide trail

The Hindu’s Made of Chennai treasure hunt, conducted on Saturday, saw about 40 participants, in teams of two, setting out across the city to solve clues, complete tasks, and visit its less-explored cultural landmarks. Titled the ‘Native Madras Treasure Hunt’, the event began and concluded at The Hindu office on Anna Salai and was designed around the theme of ‘celebrating the nativity of Chennai.’ Presented by Sunfeast Supermilk, the city-wide trail led participants across various checkpoints in Triplicane, Mylapore, Mount Road, and Chintadripet.

The teams had to visit, and in some cases complete tasks at, nine culturally significant locations along the route and collect stickers. The route included spots such as Bharathiyar Ninaivu Illam, the cattle shed near the Kannagi Statue, Poompuhar, The Old Curiosity Shop, and the Parrot House, before returning to the starting point at The Hindu office.

“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. The Old Curiosity Shop, for instance, is probably a place many have passed by but never really gone into,” said Vijay Prabhakar, curator of the treasure hunt and a member of Nexus Consulting.

The winners of the event were Samyuktha R. and Sashank Balaji. “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. The hunt took us through some of the most iconic parts of the city, and it kept us on our feet.

It was not just a physical activity; we had to do some puzzles and challenges, too,” said Ms. Samyuktha.