Visited in December 2022
My Son showed me extracts from his History text book about Chola kingdom and Brihadeshwara Temple complex constructed by Rajaraja Chola. The same moment a thought strike in mind to visit Tanjavur. The main propeller for this visit was indeed the urge to visit this ancient Indian architectural marvel. Lots of people visit this UNESCO world heritage site, but what about Chettinadu which is just within 2 hours drive from Tanjavur? I don't think it is in the 'must do' list for many. I was quite inspired reading about the mansions of Chettinadu and visit one such to experience its grandeur.
This one was our winter vacation trip with family. We only had 3 days and 2 nights with us, so had to pick and choose what to cover within that time.
Itinerary:
Finally, the route and itinerary was finalised to cover Chettinadu, Tanjavur, Kumbakonam, Tiruchirapalli & Srirangam.
Started quite early from Thrissur around 4 am and drove our mini bus towards Chettinadu. We crossed the Kerala check post, entered Tamil Nadu. The drive was scenic and we stopped for breakfast at Dindigul and continued towards Athangudi in Chettinadu.
Chettinadu:
Chettinadu used to be the home of Chettiyars who were rich merchants living in huge mansions in this area of Tamil Nadu. Later, many of them moved to South East Asian countries like Singapore and Malaysia. They left their hometown and mansions for better fortune outside India. Some were thoughtful enough to maintain the heritage mansions in Chettinadu, but some left it unattended to be grabbed by nature. The place also has several water reservoirs and temples which were exclusively for Chettiyars. After a period of time, people from several other castes also occupied the place, constructed their houses as what we get to see today.
Athangudi Palace:
This is a huge mansion which is available for public to visit with an entry fee. The luxurious lives of Chettiyars while they stayed here is quite visible from the exterior and interior of the mansion. Each and every corner is heavily adorned with imported tiles, chandeliers, huge doors, glass works, mirrors etc. It was an amazing experience to explore the mansion and awe the lives of rich Chettiyars.
Athangudi Tiles:
Authentic and indigenous tile making is very well known in Chettinadu. So, we visited a local tile making centre to see the work. The workers demonstrated the tile making and they created beautiful designs out of dark coloured inks and cement. These tiles are quite famous and they get orders from all around India and abroad. We bought a few tiles as souvenirs too :)
Maharaja's Palace:
We then drove to Maharaja's palace located at Kanadukathan. This is a private property and the royal family resides here, hence entry is restricted unless you have permission from the family to visit. It was a huge white mansion with colouful paint work on roof sides and balconies. We had to settle for viewing this mansion from outside and then explored the surroundings.
By now, everyone were craving for food. It was already in plan for non-veg diners in the group to have authentic Chettinadu non-veg cuisine. We had good lunch from Narayana Vilas restaurant which is quite near the Maharaja's Palace. Vegetarian meals with rice, koottu, kara kolambu, rasam, sambar. Add on for non veg eaters were Chettinadu Koli kulambu (chicken curry), omlette and fish fry. It was good meal indeed.
Handlooms and Mansions:
Kanadukathan in Chettinadu is famous for handlooms where cotton sarees with beautiful colours and designs are woven. We visited one such and bought many sarees.
We have always made it a point to visit local handicraft workers and listen to them and see their work and purchase directly from them, which is definitely a appreciation of their hardwork and craftsmanship.
There are several mansions, some are well maintained and some all ruined, in this area. We strolled around to see them and clicked pics. The unique style, colours and architecture look so brilliant on these houses. They all have a huge gate house, are all heavily decorated and are painted in beautiful colours.
Vintage car and clock museum:
This was our final destination in Chettinadu before leaving to Tanjavur. This place houses vintage cars, cameras, radio sets etc. possibly the possessions of rich Chettiyars who used to lived here hundred years ago or so.
On our way, we saw this nice pond with lots of lotus and also got lucky to click a pic on the moped bike of a local.
We also stopped by a rock fort temple on our way. The entry to the rock fort was closed by the time we reached, however enjoyed the darshan and sun set.
Rock Fort Temple:
We reached Tanjavur by night and checked in to our hotel, had dinner and slept. The next day was to explore the beautiful temple town of Tanjavur.
Tanjavur:
Tanjavur is an ancient city and was the capital of great Chola empire. The first thing that comes in mind is definitely the Brihadeeshwara Temple. There are many places to visit and explore in this city which are all very historical and relates to Chola and Maratha empire.
Brihadeeshwara Temple:
Locally known as Tanjai Periya Kovil, Brihadeeshwara is truly majestic, out of the world, phenomenal and extraordinary! Is this enough to describe this ancient wonder? definitely NO! Its a huge and massive architectural extravaganza dedicated to Lord Shiva built by Chola king Rajaraja 1 between 1003 and 1010 CE and is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It houses one of the biggest Shivlingas in India.
Hats Off to the architects who designed and craftsmen and workers who created this marvel out of rock and stone. The main temple, frescoes, inscriptions and sculptures are related to Lord Shiva who is the presiding deity of this temple.
We reached the temple at around 6 in the morning and weather was cool and pleasant to explore the place which definitely requires a minimum of 2 - 2.5 hours. Below you can see the outward gopuras which we cross to enter the main shrine.
As we reach towards the centre of the complex, there is a huge shrine for Nandi, the vehicle of Lord Shiva and the entrance to main shrine. All around in the surroundings are the shrines of other deities like Parvati, Ganesh, Karthikeya etc.
Priceless views of the temple:
Clicking hundreds of photos and still remain discontented, this was exactly my state that day. More pictures from the complex.
Finally after offering prayers and circumambulating the shrine, we departed this glory of ancient Indian architectural excellence. Post breakfast, we visited the Royal Palace Museum.
Thanjavur Palace has the famous Saraswati Mahal library, an art gallery and the Royal Museum with an interesting collection of artifacts, paintings, books. We can also visit the Durbar Hall and Sangeet Mahal here. These are contributions from Marathas and Nayaks who ruled Tanjavur later after Cholas. There is a craft shop from where we can buy jewelleries, bronze sculptures and the famous Tanjavur Thalayatti Bommai.
Royal Palace Museum:
Kumbakonam:
Kumbakonam was on the itinerary to experience and shop the silk weaving, metal works and more importantly to visit Airavateshwara temple at Darasuram.
Kumbakonam is famous for silk sarees. We visited a local weaver and purchased silk sarees. Also, tried our hands on the loom :) There are several metal workers in Kumbakonam who make bronze and bell metal sculptures. We also visited one shop to buy lighting lamp, Nataraja model etc.
Airavateshwara temple:
Yet another masterpiece of granite sculpturing. Exceptional and intrinsic detailing of each and every story on the stone. Cannot imagine the toil the creators would have gone through in an era where there weren't the kind of machineries or technologies we have today. Time tested are these and here the shrines stand tall in front of us to prove the quality of work and craftsmanship we had centuries ago! Amazing.
Some photo moments and views from outside the temple:
Our last leg of this trip was Tiruchirapalli and Srirangam. These are also temple towns and amazing places to visit.
Tiruchirapally;
Rock Fort Temple:
This is a temple situated on the top of a rock dedicated to Lord Ganesh. We have to climb more than 400 steps to reach atop where we get darshan of the deity along with amazing views of the city and suburbs.
Its recommended to visit here in early morning hours to escape hot sun and also if its a clear day, you get to see the beautiful gopuras of Srirangam temple from here.
Street views in the morning:
Srirangam:
After exploring several Shiva temples built by Chola, at Srirangam, we visited Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple (Lord Ranganathan is a form of Lord Vishnu), which is the largest functioning Hindu Temple. The temple occupies an area of 155 acres with 81 shrines, 21 towers and 39 pavilions and is in the UNESCO's tentative list of heritage sites.
We climbed up the roof of the complex to have amazing views of the 7 shrines and the golden shrine where the deity resides. The colours on the gopuras give the place an extraordinary charm and elegance. It took more than 2 hours to walk around and explore the place.
After Srirangam, we had lunch and then it was time to leave this amazing place, back to Kerala.
Some of our picture moments:
For its historical significance, architectural excellence, beauty and finesse, these places in Tamil Nadu are absolutely worth a visit and highly recommended.
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