BIHAR’S BOROBUDUR
If an average person in Patna were asked about the Kesariya stupa, chances are that the person would be entirely unaware of it or at best would have a vague idea of it being located in the state. Unless they were history buffs. By rights, the gigantic stupa in Bihar’s East Champaran has the potential […]
BOLLYWOOD IN A MUGHAL SARAI
The glitzy world of Indian film-making, especially of the Bollywood variety is far removed from the Mughal empire. No, never mind the peculiar portrayals of emperors and their lives in movies, but the real thing. Where the Mughals set best into movies is in a less active way – when the monuments they built serve […]
Tamil Nadu Gets Its First Biodiversity Heritage Site In Arittapatti Village
The Roma Holocaust
THE TEMPLES OF MORENA – iii: HIDDEN GEMS
When I first visited the Morena region nearly fifteen years ago, with a focus on the sites of Mitaoli, Padhawali, Bateshwar and Kakanmath, those sites were little-known. Today, while those four see plenty of visitors, not just from nearby Gwalior but also from the national capital, it is time to talk of the larger heritage […]
THE TEMPLES OF MORENA – ii: PADHAWALI, KAKANMATH
The first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of Morena is a picture of heavily armed dacoits galloping through the Chambal badlands. Given the area’s past history of dacoit infestation, that picture is natural. But as seen in Mitaoli, there another face to the district – a face that comprised priceless historical monuments […]
the temples of morena – I: mitaoli
It was in the monsoon of 2006 that I first made the journey to Mitaoli. Back then, the drive from Gwalior took longer, parts of the road’s last stretch resembled Balakot after an IAF visit, the destination could not be found on GPS and few locals had even heard of the place. 2006: The first […]
Memories of a Forgotten History
Readers may wonder how the heritage of Khandagiri and Udayagiri, a favoured family destination just outside Bhubaneshwar can qualify as ‘hidden’? Sadly, while hundreds of people converge on these stunning sites over a weekend, few recognize their value and importance in being able to trace a most critical chapter of Odisha’s history. To the wider […]
Heritage off the map
The first time I saw Sreedhar, he made a peculiar gesture – of sniffing at me. When I asked him the reason, he said he was making sure that I was not wearing any ‘scent’, in his parlance. It was ‘khatarnak’ (dangerous) was his view. As a city-dweller, I couldn’t quite fathom why a scent […]
The Bundela Baolis of Datia
Medieval baolis – or stepwells – are so much a part of daily life in Datia that most people don’t think of them as heritage sites. For people like Bhanu, who lives on the outskirts of the town, the day begins each morning with him pumping water from his 17th century well to nurture his […]
