This is the fourth in series of my trip to Radisson Blu Resort Temple Bay in Mahabalipuram. I challenged a North Indian friend, who said there’s nothing to do near Chennai in the summers. I told him I could transform his life through experiences on a Saturday and Sunday. Lets dive in to the series! If you have landed directly here, Read Part 3, Part 2, Part-1 and Part-0 for context!
Here’s the video story
If you want to read up stuff, here goes the blog post below
In Search of the Surfs in Mahabalipuram!
Tej walked out to the beach, eager to get himself acquainted with Surfing. He upped his swag with his dark glasses and shorts, intently feeling the wind as he made his way. Balaji, our guide from the resort, explained to Tej about certain precautions to take care. Tej could communicate well with Balaji, since they bonded well when we started with cycling.

Surfing in Mahabalipuram
Tej was asked to lie on the surf board with the head focussed towards the sea and in line with the surf board. After the wave has been caught, the surfer has to use his hands, keeping it close to his chest, to pop up the body and suddenly stand on the surf board and maintain that position until the wave knocks him over (Beginners will keep getting knocked off)

Basic Surfing Lessons in Mahabalipuram
Surfboard tied/strapped to the leg, Tej made his way into the sea. Watch the video to know more on how it went!
Lunch by the Beach with Chef Mike
Post all of the water activities, we were invited for lunch by Chef Mike, who asked us if we were okay to learn a bit of cooking. We thought this may be fun, so we went ahead and agreed. I donned the Apron and the hat, and saw how Chef Mike went about his business grilling vegetables, and marinating sea food (which was appetising to Tej). It was fun trying to observe a part of the food being cooked on the beach, by the view of the sea in their new revamped Wharf 2.0 restaurant.

Cooking with Chef Mike in Mahabalipuram
In the initial few minutes most of my attention went to the disturbing effect the wind had on the apron, which made it fly, and I as using my hands to quell it down, just like Marilyn Monroe did to her skirt. Comical
My conversation with Chef Mike was on how different are the reactions from the customers when it comes to ordering, since a Menu card can only bring out so much, as opposed to the rich wealth of magic that a chef can customise for guests. He said that a lot of foreigners coming to India usually go by the ‘Catch of the day’ while Indians usually go for predictable food options like breads/roti. ‘Catch of the day’ usually is a Prawn plus mashed potatoes and Indian flavours like lemon garlic. The chef was very welcoming and showed us his kitchen and sat down with us as we faced the sea, talking about cooking and travelling.
Tej and I sat and gorged on some Paneer Tikkas and a couple of mocktails. One of the mocktails had more ice than drink in it, but the other one was compensating enough. After enough paneer and liquids had filled the stomach, it was time to head out a bit in the evening to go out into the city.
Sculpting in Mahabalipuram
We went to Mahabalipuram town to and explore Mahabalipuram’s sculpting scene by meeting Murugan, who was a sculptor who studied in the little town. Murugan was originally from Bhavani (near Erode in Tamil Nadu). He told us that business demand for sculpting work was down in the last 2 years. He manages to eke time out for commercial work as well as creative work. As we sit and talk, I notice various heads of famous yesteryear people. There’s a head of MGR (Kollywood actor and former chief minister of Tamil Nadu) and a head of M.G. Gandhi (India’s iconic freedom leader). I also figure out that Murugan’s body of work includes an impressive stint as one of the sculptors for the Adiyogi statue in Coimbatore, which was inaugurated by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev in his Isha Yoga complex.
If you have read this far, there’s more in the video to know and sensorily feel the described experience.
To experience the same like we did, do sign up for the Summer Chillers program, and experience life’s finer moments packed into a weekend that could otherwise be spent waking up late ordering on Zomato, and getting stuck on a traffic jam. Is the choice not clear?