Deccan temples had unique temple architecture

Hyderabad: There is something special about the architecture of the Deccan. The rulers who came to rule this region wanted to develop their own unique architectural styles that stand out even till date.

This was highlighted by Dr George Michell, architectural historian and founder trustee of Deccan Heritage Foundation.

He delivered a talk on 'Exploring the Temples of the Deccan' in Hyderabad on Friday. The talk was organised by Pleach India Foundation and based on his book released recently called 'Temples of Deccan India: Hindu and Jain, 7th to 13th Centuries', which has pictures by Surendra Kumar.

Dr Michell shared examples from across the peninsular India highlighting how the temples built between 7th to 13th centuries were exquisite in craftsmanship and unique in design. It was called Vesara temple architecture, which reflected both Dravida and Nagara styles.

The temples of Pattadakal built by the Chalukyas were royal ceremonial sites. This is the only place in India where the south Indian Dravidian style can be seen together with a curved, spiral, Nagara style which is typically north Indian.

Similar to this are the Navabrahma temples in Alampur — a place located at the border of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. This also exemplifies the north Indian Nagara style.

"The theory is, which requires more proof at the moment, that there was a Kalachuri princess who came from Malwa in central India and married into the Chalukyan dynasty who got these temples commissioned," said Dr Michell.

Another unique example is the Balligavi temple in Karnataka, which is considered to be later Chalukyan (11th century) but can be attributed to Hoysala, a ruling dynasty that tried to assume the prestige and power same as the Chalukyas and exhibited a similar architectural style as them.

However, there are certain differences, said Dr Michell, such as depiction of jataka tales on this Shiva temple, particularly the story of the monkey and the crocodile.

The Doddabasappa temple in Dambal, Karnataka is built on a 24-pointed plan that makes it look like a 24-pointed star. There were temples like these that had intricate decorations and showed great mathematical precision.

"There is something about the craftsmanship of this region, which was never written down anywhere but handed down generation after generation orally. It is quite remarkable to pass down such an exquisite skill like that. Usually architectural students take notes from the 'shastras' and question how the things mentioned there could be true. For me, the practice, the art and the skill that was transmitted solely by doing, holds primacy," the architectural historian said.

Dr Michell added that all of these temples were beautifully preserved. The Ramappa temple has columns added by the Archeological Survey of India to prevent the canopies from falling down, which he said was an 'acceptable salvation device'. "The columns are of the same stone and do not disturb the visual appeal," he said.