Chennai (/ ˈ tʃ ɛ n aɪ / (); also known as Madras / m ə ˈ d r ɑː s / or /-ˈ d r æ s /, the official name until 1996) is the capital of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.Located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal, it is the biggest cultural, economic and educational centre of south India.According to the 2011 Indian census, it is the sixth-most populous city and fourth-most …