There is something hilariously absurd, yet quietly telling about the scene in the Malayalam film Nadodikaattu (1987) where Mohanlal and Sreenivasan, as the iconic duo Dasan and Vijayan, walk along Chennai’s Anna Flyover in Arabic robes, tricked into believing that they were in Dubai.

Chennai, once fondly referred to as Madirashi by Malayalis, was the city many turned to in search of better opportunities.