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Jan 24

by GOPAN NAIR in Life in this India 2 comments tags: corn, flakes, Girl Child Day, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops creativ, gops photography, hampi, hunger, india, national, photos, poverty, stories, street

LAUGHTER OF POVERTY

Today is National Girl Child Day in India. National Girl Child Day is celebrated every year on January 24 to spread awareness about gender inequalities in the Indian society. That reminded me of an old story I always wanted to publish as a photo feature. I came across this little girl in her teens drying corn kernels under the scorching sun in the Hampi region in Karnataka. The sweltering summer had already attacked her tender skin through the torn clothes. Little pieces of stick pierced through her ears and a black thread around her neck adorned her body, perhaps the only ornaments she could afford. After entering into a conversation with her, I realized that the dried corn would go to Kelloggs factory and turn into corn-flakes and cereals for the rich. When I asked her whether she liked corn-flakes, she burst out into laughter and told me that she never had a chance to taste anything other than rice & sambar. I shamelessly clicked and captured that ‘laughter of poverty’ on film. The typical symbol of downtrodden Indian !

Oct 28

by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage 6 comments tags: architecture, blog, buddha, buddhism, buddhist, caves, cut, elephanta, ellora, ferry, gateway, gharapuri mural, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, heritage, hindu, hinduism, india, MUMBAI, of, photography, rock, shiva, shrine, site, temple, Temples, tourism, unesco, WORLD

EXQUISITE ELEPHANTA CAVES

Artillery firing continued profusely for weeks and months without having a single enemy in the vicinity. In fact, the Portuguese soldiers were firing cannon balls at the mighty rock sculptures in Elephanta caves for target practicing. A journey through the timeline of explorations, invasions and colonization would reveal the bloodshed and destruction that accompanied every successful event. Successors of those ruthless invaders who turned the treasures of a great country into heaps of rubble and sand must feel ashamed of their forefathers’ deeds. While we boast about the rich culture and heritage of India, those disturbing facts are often being ignored. Gharapuri was the name of that ancient island kingdom situated near Mumbai harbour. Gharapuri literally means ‘City of Caves’ in Marathi language. Traces of early inhabitation that dates back to 2nd century BC is still visible in this little island. For travelers visiting Mumbai, it would be a quick escapade from the hustle and bustle of one of the largest cities in the world. The island consists of two small hillocks on its east and west sides with a narrow ravine situated in the middle. Caves and sculptures have been carved out of Basalt rock similar to that existed […]

Oct 22

by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage, travel 4 comments tags: ajanta, architecture, aurangabad, blog, buddha, buddhism, buddhist, caves, cut, ellora, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, heritage, hindu, hinduism, india, jain, jaina, Kailasa, Kailasanatha, Kailasha, monastery, mural, photography, river, rock, site, temple, Temples, tourism, USESCO, WORLD

ENCHANTING ELLORA

Ellora Cave Complex is situated 29 Kms North-West of Aurangabad, a prominent city located 300 Kms away from Mumbai in India. The name Ellora has been derived from Elapura, what the place was originally known as. Carved out of Volcanic basalt rock, this group of temples and monasteries are dedicated to Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism spanning between 600-1000 AD. Out of a hundred caves discovered, 34 are accessible to the public today. Millions of years back, ancient volcanic lava flowed past the Deccan plateau and solidified to form multiple layers of fine-grain basaltic rock. Evidence of early human settlement dating back to upper Palaeolithic period (10,000 to 20,000 years old) has been located in this area. Ellora had a close proximity to a famous trade route since the Satavahana dynasty’s period (271 BC to 30 BC). Perhaps that was the reason why Ellora never got abandoned and lost to oblivion like Ajanta caves. (Read about Ajanta here>>) Though the exact period of construction has not been traced out, it is believed that this spectacular architecture was the contribution from King Krishna#1 of Rashtrakuta dynasty (760 AD). The written records of Arab travellers who visited Ellora during 10th century give us a […]

Oct 01

by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage, travel 2 comments tags: ajanta, architecture, aurangabad, blog, buddha, buddhist, caves, cut, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, heritage, india, monastery, mural, photography, river, rock, site, Temples, tourism, USESCO, waghora, WORLD

AJANTA CAVES : WHEN ROCKS TELL STORIES

Around 450 kilometres away from the hustle and bustle of Mumbai, one of the busiest cities of the world, there lies the jewel in the crown of ancient India. ‘Ajanta’ is a classic example of Indian art, Architecture, Culture and Religion integrated into a set of magnificent cave temples. Ajanta consists of a total of 29 Buddhist monasteries and sanctuaries belonging to the Theravada and Mahayana Buddhist traditions dating from 2nd century BC to 6th century AD. This wondrous architectural masterpiece had been lying abandoned and hidden away for thousands of years, until it was re-discovered by a group of British soldiers in 1819. 104 Km away from the city of Aurangabad in Maharashtra, the river Waghora descends down in a series of seven steps, forms a pool called Saptakund and flows further down through a narrow sinuous gorge adjoining a horse-shoe shaped rock. The caves had been carved on the sheer vertical face of this rock with incredible precision & artistic skills. From the shape of the rock and its geological properties, it is evident that the site was formed by an ancient volcanic eruption in Deccan plateau. It was on 28th of April 1819, a group of soldiers […]

Jan 30

by GOPAN NAIR in Life in this India 2 comments tags: common man, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, in this, india, life, photography, street

A FEW OF MY FAVOURITE STREET STORIES

HOLINESS OF LONELINESS I came across this elderly man (a Sadhu) at Rishikesh, a famous Hindu pilgrimage centre by the banks of Ganga river in India . His only possession was the Holy book, which he always kept close to the heart. He did not smile or beg for alms, but from the peace on his face, I could feel that his contented soul had already left the mortal body. There are times when we realize that the meaning of life is nothing but a big Zero ! Frozen moments where emptiness filled mega pixels !! THE BAREFOOTED GOD The God appeared in front of me ! Yes, it was on a fine Sunday morning when I was taking my usual stroll down the streets of Bangalore. I turned back listening to the sound of a chime…, and there he stood ! The barefooted Rama with a gentle smile on his face. The teenager was making some extra money in his new Avatar. The rickshaw behind him had a picture of Hanuman pasted on it, which aroused my curiosity. As per mythology, Lord Rama used to ride on the back of Hanuman ! BURNING DESIRES & STUBBORN STAINS Last night I had this weird dream . I […]

Dec 30

by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage, travel 2 comments tags: architecture, culture, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, heritage, india, photography, walls

SIMPLY WALLS… !

Year 2015 is coming to an end. When I look back, I feel 2015 was quite a happening year as far as photography was concerned . I have been trying to consolidate my favourite captures into groups and the first of the lot is ‘walls’. Yes, those walls simply fascinated me…

May 18

A SNEAK PEAK INTO HOYSALA HISTORY : BELAVADI & ARSIKERE

“Hoy, Sala !” in Kannada language means “Strike Sala !”, a dialogue that comes from Kannada folklore. As per the story, a young boy called Sala fought with a lion (or tiger) and saved his Jain Guru named Sudatta. The young warrior became the founder of an empire called ‘Hoysala’ and a depiction of this incident was adopted as the emblem of Hoysala dynasty. Hoysala Empire ruled the Deccan Plateau region of Southern India between the 10th and 14th centuries. They developed their own style of architecture and built a number of impeccable masterpieces around the kingdom, thus leaving their cultural imprint in and around the region. Several of these architectural wonders still exist in Karnataka, the most prominent ones are listed below in chronological order : Click the name of a temple to go through a photo tour. TEMPLE PLACE YEAR KING Chennakesava Belur 1117 Vishnuvardhana Hoysaleswara Halebidu 1120 Vishnuvardhana Kedareshwara Halebidu 1200 Veera Ballala II Veeranarayana Belavadi 1200 Veera Ballala II Ishvara (Shivalaya) Arsikere 1220 Veera Ballala II Kesava Somanathapura 1268 Narasimha III VEERA NARAYANA TEMPLE, BELAVADI Belavadi is a little village located 10 km north-west of Halebid (Halebeedu), the ancient capital of Hoysala kingdom. Belavadi is also known […]

Apr 23

by GOPAN NAIR in Indian architecture & Heritage 12 comments tags: aihole, Badami, bangalkot, Bhaje, cave, caves, chalukya, fort, Ganapatim, gop.org, gopan, gopan g nair, gops, gops photography, hindu, india, jain, karnataka, mahakoota, mahakuta, Malegitti, Nataraja, pattadakal, pattadakallu, RAVALPHADI, RAVANA PHADI, RAVANAPHADI, Shivalaya, shrine, Temples, tour, tourism, vatapi

BADAMI : MAGNIFICENT CAVES OF ANCIENT INDIA

BADAMI (ಬದಾಮಿ or Vatapi as it was known originally) is an ancient temple town located in the Bangalkot district of Nothern Karnataka in India. The place ‘Badiamaioi’ mentioned by Greek Geographer Ptolemy (150 AD) has been identified as Badami. Badami was the capital of Chalukya dynasty who ruled several parts of Karnataka between 540 to 757 AD. The town of Badami lies 460 Kms from Bangalore, situated at the mouth of a ravine protected by huge red sandstone ridges on either sides with a beautiful lake (Agastya lake) in the middle. Legend has it that Badami was named after an asura called Vatapi who got killed by sage Agastya. Chalukya rulers had fortified the hills surrounding the town and built several temples in and around the area. The temples and ruins at Badami, Pattadakkal, Aihole and Mahakuta are good examples of Chalukya architecture. The most famous among this group of temples are the rock-cut cave temples built between 6th and 8th centuries AD. There is a famous Carnatic recital “Vatapi Ganapatim Bhaje” praising lord Ganesha at Vatapi, composed by Muthuswami Dikshitar. The Chalukyas were defeated by Pallavas in 7th century and the idol of Vatapi Ganapati was transferred to TamilNadu which […]

LAUGHTER OF POVERTY

EXQUISITE ELEPHANTA CAVES

ENCHANTING ELLORA

AJANTA CAVES : WHEN ROCKS TELL STORIES

A FEW OF MY FAVOURITE STREET STORIES

SIMPLY WALLS… !

A SNEAK PEAK INTO HOYSALA HISTORY : BELAVADI & ARSIKERE

BADAMI : MAGNIFICENT CAVES OF ANCIENT INDIA

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