Tales of a Travel Photographer

Kanheri Caves, Mumbai: Blueprints and Prototypes of Ellora

A trip to the cave temples of Ajanta-Ellora had to be called off to accommodate a day at various government offices to sign some mundane papers. That left open a part of Saturday on my bi-annual whirlwind work trip to India and I was left to find something closer to home. The two choices for a day trip were the island of Elephanta, where, shamefully I have never been despite being a resident of Mumbai for over twenty years and Kanheri caves, that I have visited as a teen but have no living memories of.

Somewhere I read that certain caves at Kanheri are blue prints for Buddhist sculptures and structures of Ellora and then the decision was simple.

1887–A Vintage Year for Graffiti?

Graffiti at Karnak Temple, Egypt	Graffiti in a Buddhist cave temple, Kuda Cave, India	Graffiti in a ruin at Mancos Valley, Colorado, USA

Graffiti is utterly deplorable. Deplorable until the graffiti itself becomes old enough to assumes historic proportions. Other than defacing of age old monuments, the three pictures above, have one other thing in common. They were all inscribed in 1887.  I am sure statistically, there are hundreds of graffiti all over the world inscribed in a particular year in at least different three places of historical importance, except that I have witnessed them myself.

Ever since finding the second 1887 graffiti in Kude cave near Pune in 2009, I was on the look out for graffiti inscribed in that year and was blown away when I found one last month in an Anasazi ruin in the Ute Tribal Park in Colorado.

In this age of Internet, once you start looking for something, you invariably find “stuff”. For instance, two more examples of graffiti inscribed in 1887: one in Britain, the other in a high security prison of Alcatraz, SFO.

Then I found this law passed by City of Langford in California, USA; Law # 1887 that prohibits graffiti. Talk about coincidences.

P.S. If you happen to have a photo of graffiti inscribed in 1887, please send them my way.

The Hidden Gem of Lakshmi Devi Temple at Doddagaddavalli

“Ek aur dekhoge. Saahib?” Sheikh asked me. “Time for one more?”

Sheikh had been driving me around the beautiful Hoysala temples near Hassan in his vintage jeep. He had seen me palpably excited when we reached Belur early in the morning. He had quietly followed me as I relentlessly circumambulated the star shaped platform of the the Chennakeshava temple at Belur feasting on the intricate decorations of the outer walls.

“Isme kya hai saahib? Pathar hee to hai?” He had asked innocently - What’s the fuss about? Its just stone! Not knowing what to say I bought him a cheap copy of the Hoysala architecture guide book, printed in Kannada, and left him to what he did best – drive. After a hearty meal, while the heat outside soared and I dozed for a few minutes, I actually saw him flip through the book. At the Hoysaleshwar Temple at Hallebid, he followed me inside the cool inner sanctum and seemed to listen intently to the guides toneless monolog.

On the drive back, after I thought I had seen what there was to see in the region, he threw the poser my ways – one more? he was asked. It was like asking the local glutton if he cared for another morsel of dessert!