Chennai is uniquely unpredictable when it comes to weather; especially rain. The paint on your neighbour’s house might melt from rain, while you’re burning up in your house next door. Back when news channels would telecast weather reports, there was a certain Ramanan who would tell us whether it would rain or not. If he said “it won't rain tomorrow”, everyone would leave their umbrellas home and prepare to face a perfectly sunny day. Enter Pradeep John, who is touted to be Chennai’s next favourite weather forecaster. Pradeep John is the admin of the (very) popular Facebook page Tamil Nadu Weatherman. He is a true pluviophile and has been tracking rain over the last two decades.
He began blogging about weather and rainfall in 2008 and took to Facebook in 2014. His claim to fame and credibility rose during the Chennai floods in 2015. He delivered once again through Tamil Nadu Weatherman page when cyclone Vardah came visiting in December 2016. During times of mass hysteria, he took it upon himself to be the soothsayer and relayer of facts and dismiss baseless rumours. In the bio section of his page, he clarifies it's not something that he does 24X7. In his downtime, he travels around the country to tick off top rainfall stations in India every year.It is said that some people treat him like an astrologer. They consult the Tamil Nadu Weatherman before planning events or going out to do something big. There have been instances where farmers reportedly consulted him before buying tractors and expanding their fields. Some even consult him if they host functions in open halls or have travel plans. The reason why he has such a large following is that he can breakdown technical details to something that even a common person can comprehend. If you’re suspicious about the sun isn’t shining as bright as usual, just check the page to see if the clouds are going to burst in your area.
