We went to Draupadi Amman for their Aadi masam vizha patrikai, Kamakshi amman to clarify Aadi masam pujas (found a new young cockerel there), Mutthumariamman to get Jnanavel Swami’s number, Ellaiamman to get Santosh Gurukkal’s number.
Went to market for Panneer elai, found Masi Pachai (மாசி பச்சை), only [scientifically known as Artemisia vulgaris (commonly called Mugwort or Common Wormwood], Davanam, Maruvam and வெட்சிப் பூ / idli poo/ Ixora. We also got photos of the statues strewn around – bits that had presumably been part of the Genji/Senji temple ruins, brought to Pondicherry as “decor” in French times, much like the tall pillars that once surrounded the Dupleix statue and now thankfully circle Gandhi thatha on the beach–with one stray one in fact placed close to the clock tower in the market. There’s a Vishnudurga and a Bhairava (hidden by a tomato vendor), two Lingodbhava statues, and some others.
The plaza in the centre is the market’s bell tower or periya mani gundu, given to the city by one Diagou Moudaliar (Thiyagu Moudaliar), a descendent of Lazaro de Motta Tanappa Moudaliar, who became the first Dubash of Pondicherry in 1674. He became Christian, presumably to further his own fortunes, and was appointed the chief agent of the French East India Company. He was instrumental in facilitating the arrival of French officials and native migrants in Pondicherry in January 1674. In 1686, he was appointed the head of the Tamil merchants, gaining full authority over the company's commercial transactions with local merchants, fixing prices, and establishing textile production and storage hubs in Pondicherry. His son, Andre Muthappa Mudaliar, subsequently assumed commercial responsibilities as dubash starting around 1699, followed later by his grandson, Pedro Kanakaraya Mudaliar, who also served as Chief Dubash. These are names you will see around and on street signs in the older Christianised parts of Pondicherry town, where now old remnants of Hindu temples are treated as decor. It is in the centre of what is now “Goubert market” or Pondicherry’s central wet market. The belfry was built by the engineer Louis Guerre.
(The market is larger than the Chinna Kadai market with its Petite clock tower. The periya mani gundu was built in 1851 and is still called the Diagou Mudaliar Clock Tower. It was placed there in order to beautify the black town's fountain, which brought Mutrapalayam water to Pondicherry town).
To its north-western corner, the market also holds a little shrine to Vinayaka – the Varasiddhi Veeravinayaka Thirukoyil. The priest is there at 11, presumably for the ucchikaala puja, and offers lemon-rice prasadam for those around. The narrow prakaram houses two stone inscriptions, the undated older one announcing a “noothana thiruppani” and the newer 2012 one announcing the last the Kumbhabhishekam.
Notes from all over, here synthesised.