20 Sights in Chennai, India (with Map and Images)

Fort St. George is a fortress at the coastal city of Chennai, India. Founded in 1639, it was the first English fortress in India. The construction of the fort provided the impetus for further settlements and trading activity, in what was originally an uninhabited land. Thus, it is a feasible contention to say that the city evolved around the fortress. The fort currently houses the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly and other official buildings.

Wikipedia: Fort St. George, India (EN)

San Thome Church, officially known as St Thomas Cathedral Basilica and National Shrine of Saint Thomas, is a minor basilica of the Catholic Church in India, at the Santhome neighbourhood of Chennai, in Tamil Nadu. The present structure dates to 1523 AD, when it was rebuilt by the Portuguese over the tomb of Thomas the Apostle. In 1896, it was renovated in the Madras province according to neo-Gothic designs, as was favoured by British architects in the late 19th century. It is one of the only three churches of the apostolic age of ancient Christianity, known for enshrining the tomb of an apostle and are still standing in the world today; the other two being the St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City and Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in Galicia, Spain. In antiquity, there was a basilica built over the tomb of the Apostle Philip in Hierapolis of Phrygia, present-day Pamukkale.

Wikipedia: St. Thomas Cathedral Basilica, Chennai (EN)

B. M. Birla Planetarium is a large planetarium in Chennai, India. The fifth B. M. Birla planetarium in the country, it is located at Kotturpuram in the Periyar Science and Technology Centre campus which houses eight galleries, namely, Physical Science, Electronics and Communication, Energy, Life Science, Innovation, Transport, International Dolls and Children and Materials Science, with over 500 exhibits. Built in 1988 in the memory of the great industrialist and visionary of India B. M. Birla, it is considered the most modern planetarium in India, providing a virtual tour of the night sky and holding cosmic shows on a specially perforated hemispherical aluminium inner dome. Other Birla planetariums in India include the M. P. Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, the Birla Planetarium in Hyderabad, and the planetariums in Tiruchirapalli and Coimbatore.

Wikipedia: Birla Planetarium, Chennai (EN)

The Government Museum, Chennai, or the Madras Museum, is a museum of human history and culture located in the Government Museum Complex in the neighbourhood of Egmore in Chennai, India. Started in 1851, it is the second oldest museum in India after the Indian Museum in Kolkata. It is particularly rich in archaeological and numismatic collections. It has the largest collection of Roman antiquities outside Europe. Among them, the colossal Museum Theatre is one of the most impressive. The National Art Gallery is also present in the museum premises. Built in Indo-Saracenic style, it houses rare European and Asian painting of renowned artists, including that of Raja Ravi Varma. It had 0.6 million visitors in 2018. It has the richest collections of bronze idols, 500 of them dating to 1000 BCE, in Asia.

Wikipedia: Government Museum, Chennai (EN)

The Triumph of Labour, also known as the Labour statue, is a statue at the Marina Beach, Chennai, India. Erected at the northern end of the beach at the Anna Square opposite University of Madras, it is an important landmark of Chennai. The statue shows four men toiling to move a rock, depicting the hard work of the labouring class. It was sculpted by Debi Prasad Roy Chowdhury. The statue is the earliest one to be erected on the beach and is installed close to the site where the country's first commemoration of May Day was held. The statue was installed on the eve of the Republic Day in 1959, as part of the Kamaraj government's drive to beautify the beach. The statue remains the focal point of May Day celebrations in the city.

Wikipedia: Triumph of Labour (EN)

Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai is a monastic organisation for those men who were taught into existence by Sri Ramakrishna (1836–1886), a 19th-century saint of Bengal. The motto of the Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission is: "For one's own salvation, and for the welfare of the world". The math in Chennai is the first branch center of the Ramakrishna Order in Southern India. It was established in 1897 by Swami Ramakrishnananda, one of the direct disciples of Sri Ramakrishna. Besides Swami Ramakrishnananda, the Math was visited by Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi, Swami Nirmalananda, Swami Shivananda, Swami Abhedananda, Swami Premananda, Swami Niranjanananda, Swami Trigunatitananda, and Swami Vijnanananda.

Wikipedia: Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai (EN), Website

Church of Our Lady of Light is a Roman Catholic shrine in Chennai, India. It is commonly called as Luz Church by the locals, which derives from the Portuguese name Nossa Senhora da Luz. Built in 1516 by the Portuguese, it is one of the oldest Churches in the city and its foundation stone marks as one of the oldest European monuments in India. The history of the church dates back to the 16th-century legend of safe arrival to land by missionaries. The church is located very near to the Santhome Basilica, where Apostle Thomas is believed to be buried.

Wikipedia: Our Lady of Light Church, Chennai (EN)

Madras Music Academy is one of the earliest established music academies in South India. Before the concept of infrastructure was introduced to India in the early 1920s, it was a gathering for elite musicians simply called Music Academy It plays an important role in encouraging and promoting primarily the Carnatic Music Indian art form. It played a vital role in the revival of the Indian classical dance form of Bharatnatyam in the 1930s when it faced near extinction due to a negative connotation caused by conservative societal standards.

Wikipedia: Madras Music Academy (EN)

The Ashtalakshmi Kovil is a Hindu temple, which lies on the shorelines near the Elliot's beach, in Chennai, India. The temple is dedicated to the goddess Lakshmi, and her eight primary forms – the Ashtalakshmi – the giver of all eight forms of wealth, namely, offspring, success, prosperity, wealth, courage, bravery, food, and knowledge. The sanctorums are depicted on a multi-tier complex in such a way that visitors could visit all the shrines without stepping over any of the sanctorums.

Wikipedia: Ashtalakshmi Temple, Chennai (EN)

Anna Memorial, locally known as Anna Samadhi or as Anna Square, is a memorial structure built on the Marina beach in Chennai, India. It was built in memory of former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, C. N. Annadurai (1967–69), who was cremated here in 1969. The memorial is also the burial place of his protégé M. Karunanidhi. The memorial lies on the northern end of the Marina abutting the MGR Memorial, the burial place of Karunanidhi's archrivals, M. G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa.

Wikipedia: Anna Memorial (EN)

Guindy National Park is a 2.70 km2 (1.04 sq mi) protected area of Tamil Nadu, located in Chennai, India, is the 8th-smallest National Park of India and one of the very few national parks situated inside a city. The park is an extension of the grounds surrounding Raj Bhavan, formerly known as the 'Guindy Lodge', the official residence of the governor of Tamil Nadu, India. It extends deep inside the governor's estate, enclosing beautiful forests, scrub lands, lakes and streams.

Wikipedia: Guindy National Park (EN)

Gandhi Mandapam is a series of memorial structures built on Sardar Patel Salai, in Adyar, Chennai. The first structure to be built on the premises was a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi, opened by then Chief Minister of Madras, C. Rajagopalachari on 27 January 1956. Later, four other memorials for independence activist Rettamalai Srinivasan and former chief ministers C. Rajagopalachari, K. Kamaraj and M. Bhakthavatsalam were added.

Wikipedia: Gandhi Mandapam (Chennai) (EN)

Adi Kesava Temple is dedicated to Hindu god Vishnu located in Mylapore, Chennai, in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Sri Adi Kesava Perumal and his consort Lakshmi as Mayuravalli Thayar. The temple is believed to be the birthplace of Peyalvar, one of the first three of the twelve Alvar saints of the 6th-9th century CE.

Wikipedia: Adikesava Perumal temple, Mylapore (EN)

St. Peter's Church is one of the oldest churches in Royapuram area of Chennai, the capital of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The original structure was built in Gothic architecture in 1829 by Gurukula Vamsha Varnakula Mudaliars, a gang of boatmen who were serving the East India Company. They started building the church in 1825 and consecrated it in 1829 with contributions from the Secretary of Marine Board.

Wikipedia: St. Peter's Church, Royapuram (EN)

M. G. R Memorial Complex is a memorial complex built on the Marina beach in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Spread over 8. 25 acres, the memorial is located adjacent to the Anna Memorial. It was built in memory of former chief ministers of Tamil Nadu who died in office, M. G. Ramachandran and his protégé J. Jayalalithaa, whose bodies were buried at the site on 25 December 1987 and 6 December 2016, respectively.

Wikipedia: MGR Memorial (EN)

St. George's Cathedral is a Church of South India cathedral in Chennai, India. The cathedral was built in 1815. St. George's occupies an important place in the history of Christianity in India, as the Church of South India was inaugurated here on 27 September 1947. It marked the breaking down of ecclesiastical barriers between Protestants of various traditions.

Wikipedia: St. George's Cathedral, Chennai (EN)

The Kapaleeshwarar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva located in Mylapore, Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The form of Shiva's consort Parvati worshipped at this temple is called Karpagambal. The temple was built around the 7th century CE and is an example of Dravidian architecture.

Wikipedia: Kapaleeshwarar Temple (EN)

The Kaj Schmidt Memorial is an architectural landmark commemorating a Danish sailor who drowned in 1930 trying to save the life of a white girl. It is located at Elliot's Beach in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. The monument was in a derelict state, but has recently been restored.

Wikipedia: Kaj Schmidt Memorial (EN)

Kannagi statue is a statue at the Marina Beach, Chennai, India. It is located at the intersection of Bharathi Salai and Kamarajar promenade. On 2 January 1968, it was erected as Kannagi holding an anklet in her hand and demanding justice.

Wikipedia: Kannagi statue (EN)

Thousand Lights is a multi-domed mosque in Anna Salai in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, is one of the largest mosques in the country and is a revered place of worship and azadari for Shia Muslims in the city.

Wikipedia: Thousand Lights Mosque (EN)