The old Chettinad house, built 120 years ago, stands right next to this "new" one, across a narrow
street. It is not maintained like the new one is (by a staff strength of 25 including a manager and
an accountant) beacuse "it is just too expensive". The family still holds over 100 acres of wet
land, nearly 600 acres of dry land and 50-60 acres within built-up areas. Most family members live
away from their homeland, in Chennai or in Delhi, and notable among them is former union finance
minister P. Chidambaram, grandchild of Dr Annamalai Chettiyar by his daughter Lakshmi Achi. A.C.
Muthaiah, former president of the Indian cricket board, is the son of M.A. Chidambaram Chettiyar,
third son of Dr Chettiyar.