Insti at Night

Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise – Benjamin Franklin

The phrase “sleeping early and waking early is good for your health!” is so inescapable that it feels drilled into our subconscious. With “motivational” posters and WhatsApp forwards from family members and reminders from your mom on every call: “Sleep early, da. Whatever work you have, wake up early and finish it; you’ll feel fresh,” there is no escape from the constant promotion of an early-bird lifestyle.

Maybe this is true—research says so (well, at least according to my dad). Unfortunately, this well-meaning advice has always gone in one ear and out the other. The pride and superiority some of us feel from having a more unhealthy lifestyle than others is only a short-term gratification that will have a long-term impact, but when has that ever stopped us? 

The night begins with dinner in the mess, or Zaitoon if the menu doesn’t appeal to your palate. (Seriously, ragi dosa for dinner? Come on, South Mess!). From then until midnight is what is unofficially termed PoR meet time. All the head verticals and coordinators gather in workspaces across campus discussing fests, club activities, and projects, furiously jotting down MoMs as ideas fly awry. Meanwhile, the more studious crowd heads to the Central Library, waiting on its frustratingly unpredictable lift (why doesn’t it ever stop at the third floor?). Once inside, they settle down, carry their books to their tables, and dive into that final shift of studying—until the guards start chasing them out at 11:30 PM, a whole half-hour before the library officially closes…

The clock strikes 12, and no, your Cinderella isn’t leaving behind glass shoes on her way out of the ball. Insti’s resident night owls meander to the various eateries on campus for a quick bite and some socializing, perfectly coinciding with the close of the Central Library for the night and the exodus that follows. For most, the obvious choices are Usha Cafe and its neighbor, Coolbiz. The menu ranges from tea and coffee to a variety of soft drinks, along with biscuits, freshly made Maggi, and sandwiches for those late-night hunger pangs. With Chennai’s unforgiving humidity, Coolbiz next door offers some options to quench your thirst and bring some relief from the weather. My personal recommendations are Sweet Lime, LMC (Lime Mint Cooler), and Pomegranate. Another standout is Avil Milk—a humble yet satisfying blend of puffed rice, milk, and sugar that’s both filling and comforting.

Even with no familiar company in the darkness of the night, there is something about these places that keeps the loneliness away. The sounds of empty Coolbiz glasses clinking and the orange cat that occupies the ledge, sometimes purring and blissfully asleep, are sometimes all that one needs to feel right at home. And, thankfully, the chances of monkeys stealing your food through the grills are minimal at night (never zero though—beware), so you can keep that bowl of steaming Maggi on the ledge and have a midnight chat with those you run into or doom-scroll through your phone without worrying about your food being stolen. If it feels too crammed inside, the ramp, the stairs, and the stone table outside provide decent makeshift seating options. Just be wary of deer sneaking up on you and getting a good bite of your food when you aren’t paying attention!

If Usha is too far, HFC is another spot to grab some munchies. You place your order on the way and keep refreshing the app impatiently, waiting for the QR code to show up. You might even catch some birthday celebrations taking place—a chorus of people singing in unison while the cake is being cut—only to descend into a competition to smear icing across the lucky person’s face. By 1 AM, most of HFC’s joints are closed for the night, but your conversations haven’t ended yet. They instead shift to the staircases, where you sit down, lost in the night, while the coffee you ordered cools without your notice. Sometimes these conversations turn into music jams, with karaoke sing-alongs or the sounds of the guitar that someone may have brought to provide live music as the night slips away.

If this isn’t enough to satisfy your appetite, you walk a further few meters from HFC to grab a bite from the food trucks. Amongst the commotion of the crowd, the dozens of cycles parked nearby, the occasional gust of steam emerging from the stovetop, the order numbers being shouted, and the music playing from the Rotorman truck, the two trucks give you a range of meals to replace that missed dinner.

But where do you even sit through the night? Unless you are lovebirds with legs seemingly kept afloat with your hearts, poor souls like me need a place to sit. CCD, with its cappuccinos, Devil’s Own, and brownies will leave you with a small hole in your pocket, but hey, with free WiFi and AC, we aren’t complaining. Need to study? Ajanta, with its freezing temperatures (please carry a hoodie), serves as a substitute to sleep at night if you’re too lazy to return to your hostel (looking at you, Alak). If you need a place to just chill and ‘loaf’, some department blocks have seating areas where people meet to work on projects or fight over board games. And if the heads of whichever competition team you’re part of need you to slog through the night, CFI is the place to be. Even otherwise, the ambient temperatures, vending machines, and bean bags strewn across all the floors make it comfortable. I speak from personal experience; I survived last year’s cyclone holed up in CFI for three consecutive days!

Sometimes, you just want to relax and unwind. Madras Avenue and the NAC terrace are my top picks. The tree-lined avenue, paired with a gentle breeze, makes it the perfect spot for a walk or cycle ride to clear your mind and live in the moment. (Fair warning: you might occasionally stumble upon couples making out.) The NAC terrace offers an amazing view and a strong breeze, ideal for sky-gazing. (Don’t doze off, please.)

Some survivors of the night persist well into the early morning hours. However, by 3 AM, all food options within the institute are exhausted, and bloodshot eyes are in desperate need of caffeine or sustenance to push through. Capitalizing on this opportunity, eateries outside V Gate and T Gate open by 3:30 AM, with Corner Shop and D Diet being the most popular among the campus crowd. All of life’s biggest issues, future plans, and the question of whether or not to attend the nearing morning classes are discussed over chai sutta.

The sun rises slowly, and there is a brief moment of harmony between the early riser and the night owl. One is fresh and energized after a long night’s sleep. The other, baggy-eyed, desperate for their bed, pedals up the slope outside the Gymkhana and down the slope of Tapti and Mandak to hit the bed at the end, with full motivation and intent to attend their 8 AM class. 

(Spoiler alert—they won’t.)

Edited by Ishan Khurma.

Shailesh K

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