The Eastern Frontiers - Kempegowda Towers

Having started off with the Kempegowda Tower that was closest to home (see earlier blog titled The North Western Frontier), I then had the occasion to be in the vicinity of the two towers that marked the eastern extremities of Bangalore as envisioned by its founder, Chieftain Kempegowda. I was carrying my DSLR in the first instance and had only my phone camera in the second.

TOWER # 2 :

First, the one that marked the North Eastern end - which is now on the banks of the Ulsoor Lake (in Central Bangalore !). This tower is not normally accessible as it is within Army territory (Madras Sappers). The best view of the tower, given the circumstances, is from the other side of the Ulsoor lake, close to the Tamil Sangam building on Annaswamy Mudaliar Road. Enter the Ulsoor Lake garden area through the gate diagonally opposite the Tamil Sangam building and you will catch  glimpse of the Kempegowda tower on U rock, through the bushes, behind the quirkily named Buffalo Ganj island.

 

 

The tower presents a very scenic sight, amongst flaming gulmohur trees, with the cool waters of the Ulsoor lake in the foreground. The tower, structurally, appears similar to the ones found at Sadashivnagar and Lalbagh, but seems to have lesser number of carvings on the gopura as compared to the one in Sadashivnagar.

Robert Hyde Colebrooke, a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Bengal Infantry, later to become Surveyor-General of Bengal (1794-1808), who was also a talented artist, apparently depicted one of the four Towers in a lithograph. I found this work of his on the web, depicting East Bangalore. Is it the original Kempegowda Tower or some other shrine ?

TOWER # 3 :

The South Eastern frontier was marked by the best known of the 4 Towers, on the granite rock in the 200+ acre Lalbagh. The rock itself is geologically significant as it is peninsular gneiss (amongst the oldest rocks on earth, about 3000 million years). This is what the Geological Survey of India site has to say about this rock formation : "The Lalbagh hill is composed of dark biolite gneiss of granitic to granodioritic composition containing streaks of biolite. Vestiges of older rocks are seen in the form of enclaves within the gneiss. Peninsular Gneiss of the region is dated 2500 to 3400 million years that accreted in three major episodes, i.e. 3.4 Ga, 3.3-3.2 Ga and 3.0-2.9 Ga. The quarries of Lalbagh are of great importance for researches on earth sciences towards evolution of the terrain"

The tower is fenced off to prevent vandalism and the images of the gods on the gopura have been painted in bright colours, unlike in the case of the Sadashivnagar and Ulsoor Lake towers.

There is a stone etching inside the enclosure, explaining the significance of the tower, but the board is not easily readable.

The view from the top of the rock formation is a spectacular view of KH road and tall buildings like UB City beyond.

This tower is built at an altitude like the two others already described in this blog, and would have served its purpose as a watchtower as well. At one point in time, it should have been quite possible to see the three other towers from any of the 4 towers.

This leaves the tower near Kempambudhi lake as the fourth and last one to explore. That is an adventure for another day.

Tickling the funny bone - The Indian Cartoon Gallery

Did you know Bangalore had a lighter side to it ? We - my daughter Dhrithi and I, set out to discover this side of Bangalore today. And it was right in the heart of the city !

The place I am referring to is the "Indian Cartoon Gallery". And we couldn't have timed it better - because the place is currently holding an exhibition of the works of Paul Fernandes titled "Bangalore : Swinging in the 70s" - exhibiting 65 watercolour works of art until the 8th of April.

Paul Fernandes is Bangalore's own Mario Miranda. Enough said.

He has illustrated a number of books including Peter Colaco’s "Bangalore" and "On A High Note" (the blurb reads 'A Slightly Inebriated Introduction to Western Classical Music') as well as his own "Shine Board Arts" - an authentic collection of signs of the times in India. You may have also seen his work in the famous poster depicting the chaos of MG Road and the other one featuring the Ambassador Car.

Now, back to the Indian Cartoon Gallery : This is located in the basement of Midford House, in the area called Midford Garden (the road beside Big Kids Kemp, opp. Vijaya Bank HO), off MG Road and a couple of minutes walk from the Trinity end of M G Road. Four wheeler parking may be a problem on this road and it is advisable to park in one of the parallel roads and walk down to Midford House.

A first-of-its-kind initiative of the Indian Institute of Cartoonists (IIC), the gallery has been promoted with the sole aim of promoting and encouraging the art of cartooning. The Bangalore Gallery is the first of several planned across the country and is open to all.

With an overall area of 2000 sq ft, the gallery exhibition hall is quite roomy and well lit.

The policeman of the 1970's with his khaki shorts and tall hat caught our eye as soon as we entered the hall. All around the room were watercolours depicting famous landmarks of Central Bangalore and Cantonment areas in the 70's. Here are some of the works from a nostalgic perspective :

1. The Pensioner Paradise : Colonial Bungalows with huge garden space are a rarity now.

2. Places that have since disappeared

 And some I am including for Family Members and Friends to enjoy :

 Followed by a sketch on the current state of Bengaluru...

I look forward to visiting the Gallery again after April 8th to see what it is that they have on display when there is no special feature on. At that point in time, I also intend to visit the library attached to the gallery. But I had to break the news on this particular exhibition, so that all interested can catch it before April 8th. The timings are 10 am to 6 pm.

If you miss the exhibition, Paul's work can be seen in his own gallery called Apaulogy, located at 15, Clarke Road (Opp. Au Bon Pain), Richards Park Entrance, Richards Town. I intend to visit and write about the gallery soon - and hope to meet the man himself. And the above paintings form part of a book which has been released recently, titled, unsurprisingly : 'Bangalore - Swinging in the 70s'.

So like me, if you want to see the lighter side of Bangalore, visit the unique Indian Cartoon Gallery. And have a hearty laugh.

The North Western Frontier - Kempegowda Tower

The story of the four Kempegowda Towers that defined the boundaries of Bangalore has always fascinated me. The city having outgrown the boundaries defined then, I realize I now live beyond the North Western Tower that the visionary founder of the city placed in what is today called Sadashivnagar. 

Being the most accessible of the four towers (to me), I visited the park in which the tower is located, one evening last week. To get there, you have to go past Cauvery Theater on Bellary Road and head towards Mekhri Circle. Don't take the underpass but the road on the left which is beside the underpass. You will come across the Sri Ramana Maharshi Shrine & Meditation Hall and beside this building is the park where the NW Kempegowda Tower is located.

The main entrance to the Kempegowda Tower Park is on 11th main, which is a left turn from Bellary Road after the Sri Ramana Maharshi Shrine entrance. There is ample space available on this road for parking.

Alternately, you can use the entrance right next to the Ramana Maharshi shrine, especially if you have parked your vehicle in one of the earlier roads and are walking down Bellary Road.

It is quite a well-maintained park, with lots of trees and flowering shrubs. There is a stone plaque mentioning that the first sapling in the initiative to plant 1 lakh saplings in Bangalore was planted here by the then Chief Minister - Sr. S M Krishna, in 2002. The tower is deep-set inside the park, and although at an elevation - but is still not easily visible from the road.

 

The Tower itself has undecorated stone pillars but the gopura has sculpted images of gods and goddesses. Some of these images are broken and have head and torso missing. Fortunately, there is no sign of graffiti marring the tower.

On initial inspection, it seemed that the theme of the sculptures was Lord Shiva and family; but on perambulating to the other side, I spotted what was unmistakably a Krishna on the West side.

The park attracts a lot of birds. I distinctly saw a couple of koels and heard a few other birds. Another visit in the early morning hours is called for. I also noticed the customary fitness enthusiasts, but the park wasn't crowded at any point in time when I was there.

And then, in this pristine and sylvan environment, an ugly concrete structure caught my eye. A closer look and I was quite intrigued by the inscription on the embedded stone tablet. It proclaims that ‘The Bangalore longitude station of the Great Trigonometrical Survey was situated 38 feet north of the baseline station.’ The stone tablet credits Capt W M Campbell, RE, 1875 – 76 and Lt W J Heavyside RE 1887 – 88 with being ‘observers.’ When I got back home and googled "Great Trigonometrical Survey", Wikipedia had this to say - "The Great Trigonometric Survey was a project of the Survey of India throughout most of the 19th century. It was piloted in its initial stages by William Lambton, and later by George Everest. Among the many accomplishments of the Survey were the demarcation of the British territories in India and the measurement of the height of the Himalayan giants: Everest, K2, and Kanchenjunga. The Survey had an enormous scientific impact as well, being responsible for one of the first accurate measurements of a section of an arc of longitude, and for measurements of the geodesic anomaly." The page also had this interesting map produced by the survey. Quite fascinating, and I have downloaded a couple of reports on this survey and its impact for later reading.

 Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Trigonometric_Survey

So there is a little bit of British History and geology associated with this park as well. Here are some links to interesting related articles, in case you want to know more :

http://archive.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/feb152005/spt6.asp

http://thehindujobs.com/thehindu/2003/07/03/stories/2003070309370300.htm

I could not come away without visiting the Ramana Maharshi shrine, an oasis of peace in the middle of a traffic-busy road. The interiors are spacious and ideal for meditation.

I strongly recommend a visit to both the Kempegowda Tower Park and the Ramana Maharshi shrine - sanctuaries of peace in an otherwise bustling city.

Chokkanatha Swamy Temple : Where the deity is Vishnu and Not Shiva !

Having visited the Anandalingeshwara Temple in Hebbal and having my curiosity aroused about Chola temples in Bangalore, I came across a couple of Internet articles regarding an ancient Chola temple in the heart of the city - Domlur, no less. When the opportunity arose to visit that part of town, I resolved to pay a visit to the temple as well. Inspite of the many precautions I had taken to refer to directions listed on the Net, I still had to ask my way around the area before I got to my destination. Chokkanatha is a name that is used in reference to Shiva, not Vishnu. Very few people, even those from that area, knew about an ancient Vishnu temple there. And the area abounds in temples - I counted 6 in my wanderings through two roads.

So, how do you get there ? The simplest way is to turn into a narrow lane called 5th Cross from the Old Airport Road. This would be opposite the Modern World Showroom. There is a small signboard pointing to the temple at the beginning of 5th Cross, that should indicate you are on the right path.

The signboard says "Ancient 12th Century Chola Temple" making this probably the oldest temple in Bangalore. It also mentions "Sreedevi Bhoodevi Sametha Sri Chokkanatha Swamy Temple" which means the main deity is accompanied by his consorts - Sreedevi and Bhoodevi.

The temple has a tall stone flagstaff in front. The temple itself is elevated from the road level and there are steps leading up to the first level, where there are two smaller modern shrines dedicated to Ganesha and Anjaneya, on either side. The steps are flanked by two stone pillars with interesting carvings (scenes from the Dasavataram) and carrying inscriptions in Tamil.

Inscriptions (in ancient Tamil script) on the stone walls of the temple indicate that the main deity is "Chokkaperumal". They also indicate that the idols are made of saligrama stone, which is obtained from Nepal. The location has been identified as Tommalur. According to one of the earliest inscriptions, Irvi Tripuranthaka Chettiar and his wife donated the lands for the temple and its maintenance. There are also inscriptions referring to Hoysala King Ramanandadeva of 1300 AD and his sanctioning of money for temple festivals. The sanctum sanctorum or garbhagriha and the ardha mantapa seem to be from the Chola period. The front portion or navaranga mantapa seems to be typical of the later Vijayanagar style.

A renovation of this temple was carried out during 1975-1983, and care was taken to preserve the older structures. I was able to glean all this information from a painted board inside the temple premises.

The temple is constructed such that in certain months, the early rays of the rising sun directly illuminate the deities in the sanctum sanctorum. This is something I want to see but it would mean another trip in the wee morning hours. The idols looked resplendent in the light of incandescent lamps, and should be quite a spectacle in golden sunlight.

Zoom into the pictures below to see some of the Tamil inscriptions on the stone walls. 

Another interesting feature is the decade-old discovery by a retired chief executive engineer of the presence of eight pranic points in the temple. The points in the prakaram area are marked with white squares.

The temple premises are clean and well maintained. The customary Garuda idol facing the main deity, has a little mantap of its own.

Yet another interesting tale that I came across and wanted to check for myself is this : There is an Anjaneya temple just a few metres away, where the head of the Anjaneya idol is supposedly at the same level as the feet of Chokkanatha Swamy. The elevation of the Chokkanatha Swamy temple and the construction of the Anjaneya Swamy temple below road level seems to make this a distinct possibility.

It was late evening by the time I got to the Anjaneya Swamy temple. The temple was bustling with activity and hence I could not get to talk to the priest. I decided that I would be back for a more detailed exploration and left, feeling quite contented that I had visited possibly the oldest temple in Bangalore.

The temple on a hillock - Anandalingeshwara Temple

The temple on a hillock - Anandalingeshwara Temple

A hillock, clearly visible from the Hebbal flyover, had always tickled my curiosity as I crossed the flyover on my daily trips to office - especially since I could also see trees and greenery on its summit. Could it be a good place for birding ? Could it turn out to be the ideal place to capture the setting sun and great panoramic views of North Bangalore ?

Curiosity led to some googling - and I found out just this : The hillock was called Anandagiri, and there was a temple called the Anandalingeshwara Temple on top. Some more searching led to the Chola Temples in Bangalore Wiki page and the revelation that there was possibly a Chola temple in my backyard. I had to visit it soon and visit it I did. But the fact remained that there wasn't much about the temple or any pictures to be found on the Internet - certainly no one had blogged about it.

And thus was born the idea to create "The Unknown Bangalore" blog - to talk about the many places in Bangalore that have interesting stories behind them, but with very little Internet presence.

But back to Anandagiri and the Anandalingeshwara Temple... the first thing to mention about the hillock and the temple on top of it, is the accessibility. If you are thinking of driving upto the foot of the hillock in an air conditioned car, perish the thought. The roads leading upto to the hillock are so narrow, I found it difficult to maneuver a two-wheeler in parts. Hebbal 3rd Main is the main approach road from Bellary Road (if you are coming from Mekhri Circle towards Hebbal Flyover, crossover to the service road on the opposite side under the flyover near the Veterinary College, cross the Hebbal Police Station and turn right into 3rd Main) and you have to drive down 3rd Main Road until the deadend, then take a right and another one in front of the Ganesha temple, to reach the West Gate of the temple at the foothills.

Stone steps (a moderately easy climb) lead upto a modern structure. Could this be the Chola temple ? I walked into a spacious hall with three idols at one end and the navagraha idols at the other. The elaborately decorated Shiva lingam was flanked by a Ganesha idol on the left and the Goddess Ananda Bhavani on the right.

After I had paid my respects to the Gods and the priest had performed an archane on my request, I asked him about the origins of the temple. While the current structure is modern, the temple and idols existed three hundred years ago, he said. The deity is a powerful one and we have large crowds coming here on the ocassion of Shivarathri, he added. In response to my question as to what else there was to see on Anandagiri, he mentioned a cave and the Kalabhairaveshwara temple within. A short climb down the stairs leading to the East gate and there was the little cave ... with a fairly recently installed idol.

Just behind the main temple is this interesting rock painted to look like a kneeling elephant. The elephant seems to be prostrating to the deity, but is positioned behind it.

Trees are found in abundance - I suspect an early morning visit may lead to some good bird sightings as well.

After going around the temple, I then concentrated on the view.  And the views of North Bangalore from the summit are spectacular...

As are the sunset scenes - 

So, was I disappointed that it was not a Chola temple, after all ? (The Chola dynasty ended more than 700 years ago) Nope. I guess the person who created the Wiki page confused this with the temple on Nandi Hills (which was also called Ananda Giri at one point in time).  But the serenity of the temple, its location and the views are all great, and that makes this relatively unknown location worth a visit.