Thiruneermalai | Perumal Temples of Chennai with Sriram V

Thiruneermalai When we hear the name we can imagine a place with plenty of water and greenery. Today when you go there you find industrial estates and so on. And yet, 30 years ago, it was still very wooded. In the middle there is a lot of water and rising from there is a hillock. The Lord here is Neervanna Perumal and He is in four poses - standing, walking, sitting and reclining. Two of the Azhwars - Bhootathazhwar and Thirumangai Azhwar have sung on this shrine. Extensively renovated by Vijayanagar rulers it still bears traces of their legacy. But its history goes much further back in time. During East India Company rule the Dubash Venkatachala was trustee and we read of music performances organised by him at the temple.