Back to Chamundi Hill, a photo from Karnataka, South

Photographer's Note

This is from Chamundi Hill on the outskirts of Mysore city in southern India. In the background is the 'gopalam', gate tower, of the 17th century Chamundeshwari Temple.

I have shown photos from this place a few times before, including this:

https://www.trekearth.com/viewphotos.php?l=7&p=1572327

Chamundi Hill attracts many visitors and the temple at the summit is surrounded by a large platform.

I climbed the hill on a stairway of 1008 steps, instead of taking a taxi. In my diary I found this description of what I found at the summit:

"There were already hundreds, maybe thousands, of persons. The last stretch of the road was packed with tourist buses and taxis honking constantly, and along the road were souvenir stalls, people selling soft drinks or postcards and a number of stalls selling religious offerings. Outside the temple was a very long queue of people waiting to get inside."

Recent photos I have seen on the net show a bright yellow gopalam, so it was obviously repainted since 1988 when my photos were taken.

The WS shows a saleswoman. Both photos were scanned from Kodachrome slides.

I will remain on Chamundi Hill for my next upload.

Fis2, pajaran, ChrisJ, ikeharel, jean113, pierrefonds, PaulVDV, mcmtanyel, ricardomattos, worldcitizen, COSTANTINO, adramad ha contrassegnato questa nota come utile

Critiques | Translate

Fis2 (169759) 2021-10-14 0:37

Witaj Gert my neighbour today again :)!
Another beautiful photo from Your archive.
Curious scene from daily life, excellent reporter's work.
Good framing and colors.
Well done.
Good morning.
Krzysztof

pajaran (114945) 2021-10-14 0:37

Pozdrav.

Lep pogled, interesantan tekst ...
Lepo mesto sa pijacom i starom arhitekturom, dobro pokazano sa lepim bojama, kontrastom, perspektivom i uhvacenim trenutkom sa posetiocima.
Dobar rad sa fotografijom u radionici.
Lepe fotografije uradjene skeniranjem slajdova.
Lepo secanje.

Zelim vam lep i uspesan dan, sve najbolje.
Paja.

ChrisJ (171252) 2021-10-14 0:51

Hej Gert

I saw similar Indian Gate Towers in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. But none in Bengal, the only part of India I visited from Nepal. Unusual to see this without any colourful adornments. Good sharpness and the fg man with hessian bags adds depth and layering to the composition. Tfs!

ikeharel (112467) 2021-10-14 2:14

Hello Gert,
Managed to combine two subjects on this picture: the imposing tower prominently above the street where we see peddlers offering their merchandise on a humble local market.
The towerby itself has beautiful countless carved elements in beautiful returning pattern.
Good afternoon,
Ike

jean113 (27639) 2021-10-14 5:17

Hello Gert, two excellent scans.
What are the men in the foreground selling, it looks like rice, but I am unsure.
The gate tower is spectacular, very beautiful carvings.
Thanks for sharing.
Kind regards, Jean.

pierrefonds (113610) 2021-10-14 5:39

Hi Gert,

You have captured well a daily life scene. The point of view is showing the details of the Chamundeshwari temple. The light is enhancing the colors. Have a nice dya.

Pierre

Royaldevon (85606) 2021-10-14 6:42

Hello Gert,

I am not surprised that you are returning to these interesting shots, now that you are able to scan more skilfully.
This tower is remarkable for its abundance of carvings! Each layer takes you closer to the summit, spread like a a peacock's tail!
At the very top seem to be some staring eyes!!

We can see the market activities here, whilst your previous posting revealed the long queue!

The words from your diary stirred my memories of Karachi, where roads were packed with buses and taxis and animal drawn carts! The noise of honking and shouting and engines revving was both annoying and exciting, at the same time!

My warm regards,
Bev :-)

GyurMaster (24672) 2021-10-14 7:04

Dear Gert,

The man in the foreground creates a good counter-point to the temple tower decorated richly. The vendor seems to have a lot of time to think about the things of life, he is not disrupted by the army of buyers, unlike the vendors in bg. As I see those sandals - what we call Vietnamese sandals - were a thing back then. Here in Hungary its a younger trend.

Best Wishes,
Gy.

Gerrit (62042) 2021-10-14 8:03

Hello Gert,
a wonderful highly decorated tower and such a lively street scene in a real Indian photo.
Thanks and regards,
Gerrit

jhm (211734) 2021-10-14 10:00

Hello Gert,

When this temple are repaint shall as been a big work.
Your picture are again sublime, I see pictures on TE that certainly not the quality or your scanned picture.
I am a little bit at make, a trip through your pictures.
Also your second picture with the woman are pleasant to look at.
Composition and presentation are superb.
Very well done, TFS.

Best regards,
John.

lousat (138623) 2021-10-14 10:06

Hi Gert,a very long climb but the final result were amazing,great view of temple so rich of decorations and in total white with scene of daily life inside too, i like the garland maker so colorful in the WS too! Have a nice evening and thanks,Luciano

Tue (91604) 2021-10-14 10:34

Hej Gert,
Det høje tårn med alle de mange skulpturer og andre små detaljer ser bare så imponerende ud og står klart frem fra skyerne. Markedet og købmændene og kunderne danner et livligt indtryk i forgrunden og giver nogle flere farver til billedet.
Lars

PaulVDV (62804) 2021-10-14 12:41

Hello Gert,
When I went to Chamundi Hill there was also a lot of people but almost everyone was Indian. I only met one other westerner there. It was a slow queuing inside the temple.
I remember that there were a lot of offerings with coconuts (plus other things) for sale and indeed a lot of flower garlands as in your WS.
Here the whole gopura and all the bas-reliefs and statues have a light grey colour. But the saris of the ladies on the street are beautifully colourful.
PS: I took a bus to the top and walked back down.
Best regards, Paul

jmdias (114296) 2021-10-14 16:45

gert

Many decades ago a rich indian wanted to build a skyscraper in São Paulo that would be the highest of brazil, but he wanted it in this format, of course the project was canceled,
Excellent these two images. The temple is fabulous,
Tc

Jorge

PiotrF (54246) 2021-10-14 17:01

Hello Gert
Interesting picture from street Chamundi Hills. Amazing Temple in background, nice scene in WS.
Good work, fine presentation
Regards
Piotr

ifege (46985) 2021-10-14 17:43

Hi Gert
All the towers like this one that I've seen are coloured so it is not surprising that they've painted this one since you were there just a few years ago. Another 2 good interesting scans.
cheers
Ian

mcmtanyel (67681) 2021-10-14 18:49

Hello Gert,
I am not sure I would like this tower in yellow. Back in 1988, it looked like an ivory tower.
Regards,
MT

dkmurphys (79209) 2021-10-15 0:04

Hello,
Well, that a genuine spectacular scene! What a temple and some lovely colors around it! Great!
Have a fine weekend.

D

ricardomattos (17408) 2021-10-15 7:35

Hi Gert

What a beauty of shot my friend. You captured the man, the square and this fantastic tower full of art behind. Great job !! Fantastic also the details of the tower! a gem !!

Best regards

Ricardo

worldcitizen (15958) 2021-10-19 13:18

Hello Gert,
The tower on the left really grabs my attention, but there's a lot to see in this photo. My eyes are gravitating towards the red textile hanging in front of the gate, and also to the man sitting in the foreground. I'm intrigued by the painting of the bird at the top of the gate, too!

COSTANTINO (115563) 2021-10-19 22:34

hello my dearest Gert
every photo of yours is a real
sample of tradition and civilazation
this one is really unique
describing
a different world
regards
costantino

adramad (72564) 2021-10-29 10:09

Hi Gert.
Sensational this vertical view, which gives us a wide field of the high structure of the temple full of figures and ornaments and of all the people we see in the courtyard, vendors and visitors.
Ideal in the WS the flower seller.
A fantastic photo, with beautiful natural colors, very good lighting and excellent sharpness.
Very well done. Love it.
Enjoy the weekend.
Very best regards.
Luis.

kasianowak (17672) 2021-12-07 3:37

Hi Gert
Magnificent architecture. Thanks for the link to an earlier shot, it's interesting to see the tower from different sides.
The street life around the gopalam is equally important in the image, especially the man and his merchandise in the foreground. His presence links the photo to that in WS - a seller of an eclectic mixture of flowers and fruit (are those round hairy things coconuts?).
Best wishes
Kasia
PS. And we are being told that mass tourist is the thing of the 21st century...