ॐ श्री गुरुभ्यो नमः ॐ श्री शिवानन्दाय नमः ॐ श्री चिदानन्दाय नमःॐ श्री दुर्गायै नमः
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One of the most beautiful cities in South India, Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram is named after the great Pallava ruler Narasimhavarman-I.
Filled with relics, monuments and some of the most beautiful temples in the world, Mahabalipuram was an important sea port of the Pallava dynasty from the 7th to the 10th centuries.
Mahabalipuram sea-shore temple Often referred to as the “Land of Seven Pagodas” based on an ancient Hindu legend, Mahabalipuram is a city known for its grandeur, hand carved monolithic structures, shrines and the Rathas or cave temples.
The descent of the Ganges is the world’s largest bas-relief sculpture depicting tales from the Mahabharata.
The legendary stone-built Shore temple, which is a mammoth architectural wonder, is believed to be the only one surviving among the seven pagodas.
Mahabalipuram is known worldwide for its intricately designed stone-carvings & stone sculpture. These idols of Hindu gods and goddesses are ready to sell in Mahbalipuram – a UNSESCO World Heritage Site.
These idols are exported to different parts of the country from here. Have a look at some of these ingeniously carved statues, available in a wide range of prices for the art-loving affluent-class :
Buy Mahabalipuram Stone Statues Online on Amazon India
Here’s an article by Chandana Banerjee written for https://travelthruhistory.com/
The Stone Artists of Mahabalipuram :
In Mahabalipuram (or Mamallapuram), a coastal town near Chennai in Tamil Nadu, I am accompanied by Erudhayam, a knowledgeable guide. As we explore the historically vibrant surroundings on a sweltering summer morning, we encounter a weathered sculptor.
He sits bare-chested, adorned only in a blue checked lungi, diligently crafting his masterpiece. Engrossed in his work, he momentarily glances up to acknowledge our arrival before resuming his rhythmic scraping.
The sound harmoniously blends with the serene atmosphere of this charming seaside town. Erudhayam points out the sculpture taking shape before us—a mouse symbolizing Ganesha’s presence.
The scratch and scrunch of stone, the sonorous ‘tonk tonk’ of hammer and chisel, the high-pitched Banshee-like screech of the drill is as much part of Mamallapuram as are the ancient temples and monuments made during the reign of the Pallavas.
In the 6th to 8th centuries AD, King Mahendravarman and his son Narasimhavarman I played significant roles in the architectural development of the town now known as Mamallapuram. King Mahendravarman initiated the construction of rock-cut cave-temples and built the Dharmaraja Mandapa to accommodate pilgrims visiting the town.
Narasimhavarman I, also known as Mahamalla, continued his father’s work and introduced the Mahamalla style of temple architecture. This style involved creating freestanding monolithic structures.
Many of the notable monuments in Mamallapuram, such as the monolithic Ratha, sculpted scenes depicting the Mahabharata and mythology on the exposed rock surface known as Arjuna’s Penance, and the rock-cut cave-temples of Govardhanadhari and Mahishasuramardini, were built during Narasimhavarman I’s reign.
Additionally, he oversaw the construction of the Jala-Sayana Perumal temple and the sleeping Mahavishnu statue in the rear part of the Shore temple complex.
Rajasimhan, the son of Narasimhavarman I, ruled from 700 to 728 AD. During his reign, he introduced the masonry-style of architecture and commissioned the construction of the grand five-storied Shore Temple.
According to local legend, the king is said to have built seven temples, but six of them were submerged by the sea due to a tsunami.
If the Shore Temple, the Five Rathas, the Mandapams and Arjuna’s Penance are what this small town is about, then so are the hundreds of sculptors who work in street-side studios, meticulously turning stone, metal and wood into pieces of art.
Mamallapuram is all about sculpture, old and new; history and mythology as is the old bespectacled guide in a crisp white Veshti (a sort of wrap-around skirt that men wear), who has been standing at the very spot at the gateway of the town for the past 31 years, heralding tourists with his trademark “I can show you Mamallapuram. Want a guide?”
This guide traverses between the role of the story teller, historian, cultural ambassador, and translator.
It is he who introduced me, as he must have done to others, to the soul of Mamallapuram. He had been my guide a month ago, when I first visited the town to admire the ancient monuments.
This time, when I tell him that I want to know more about the sculptors – the ancient ones, who disappeared mysteriously, leaving many of their creations, unfinished, and the new sculptors, who carry on the legacy of this temple town, Erudhayam takes me to the Five Ratha road.
The showroom with the most opulent sculptures is situated here. It belongs to the award-winning sculptor, Mr. M. Durrai Raj.
Buy Mahabalipuram Stone Statues Online on Amazon India
At ‘Mayan Handicrafts’, in his sprawling showroom, the entire kingdom of Gods and Goddesses are parked in front of the shop : a languid, life-size Buddha, Saraswati – the serene goddess of learning, the radiant Lakshmi, various sculptures of the Laddoo-loving Ganesha, Vishnu and Shiva, favourite deities of South India, Hanuman – the monkey god, and a pair of voluptuous celestial nymphs.
Granite elephants and roaring lions find a place among the pantheon of deities. The rooms in the shop are packed with scores of idols, while an equal number jostle for space on the dusty shelves.
The sculptures in Mamallapuram vary in quality and origin, with some being exquisitely carved by a master sculptor while others are made by apprentices at the studio. Ganesha, the beloved elephant-headed God associated with good luck, is a popular subject in these sculptures.
In Durrai Raj’s shop, various depictions of Ganesha can be found, including dancing, reading, playing musical instruments, reclining, and meditating. These stone sculptures come in different sizes, ranging from one foot to over seven feet, and are crafted using a variety of stones.
Renowned for their intricate craftsmanship, the sculptures from this studio are shipped worldwide and to different parts of India. There are other active sculpture workshops where sculptors can be seen diligently working on their creations.
Buy Mahabalipuram Stone Statues Online on Amazon India
I meet another sculptor, Dashnamoorthy, a seasoned artist, who is an alumnus of the Government College of Architecture and Sculpture at Mamallapuram.
He has turned the portico of his house into a studio and shop. There he creates medium-sized stone sculptures of gods and goddesses, and sells them to tourists who saunter by.
A French couple in cargo shorts and baggy t-shirts walk in to examine the polished, black idols of the pot-bellied Ganesha. They want to take one home, and Dashnamoorthy scurries off to show them some.
Erudhayam the guide, and I cruise through the dusty streets of Mamallapuram, sweat streaming down our faces, in quest of more sculptors and more stories.
All of the workshops along the streets hum with activity. The sound of screeching drills fills the air with their busy cacophony.
I peep into a shop where a group of sculptors are immersed in their work. A man in a pair of dirty brown pants and a once-white shirt is chiselling away at a granite sculpture of Shiva.
Another in faded jeans and a psychedelic shirt works his drilling machine on a slab of stone, willing it to crack and reveal the delicately drawn shape of the idol.
In another part of the studio, a man is working on a huge statue of Vishnu, while his friend slaps clay on a model of Buddha.
As they work, wrapped up in a thin layer of smoke that swirls up from the kiln, Rajendra, a lecturer at the College of Sculpture and a bronze sculpture specialist, helps a trainee with his metal creation and also gives us a smattering of information on the process of making the metal figures.
“These figurines are made with five metals, which means most have 80% copper, 20% brass, 5% lead, and a little bit of gold and silver,” explains Rajendra, who has been teaching this very subject for the past 20 years.
I am curious to know about the College, which has produced more than half of the town’s sculptors, and wonder what role it has played in re-introducing the art of making sculptures, an art that had disappeared suddenly, after the decline of the powerful dynasty.
Rajendra answers my questions. “The Government started the college in 1957 to promote and revive the art of making sculptures and temples, something that Mamallapuram was known for since ancient times.
Over the years, sculpture work has become the chief profession of the people in the town. There’s even a museum here with over 3000 pieces done by the students.”
Most of the sculptors we see around the town are alumni of this college; others learned the art from family members.
While nobody here has been able to trace their lineage back to the sculptors of the Pallava Dynasty; the monuments in Mamallapuram and the new age sculptors have a fine bond, and rely on each other to keep the tradition and heritage of this culturally-rich town, alive.
“When tourists from India and abroad come to the town to see the monuments, they drop into the studios to buy sculptures. Business is brisk during the tourist season from September to January,” chips in Elumalai, a friend of Rajendra, who is a self-taught sculptor and takes pride in making small idols out of red marble and green stone.
While most of the stone sculptures here are large, the marble and green stone deities in Elumalai’s shop near the Vishnu Temple are about eighteen inches tall.
Delicately carved by this engineer-entrepreneur-sculptor, these can easily fit into a tourist’s valise or rucksack. “I make sculptures for middle-class people – affordable and portable.” he says.
Elumalai is the only person I’ve met in Mamallapuram, who can speak fluent English. He shows me the way a slab of stone is turned into a breathtaking beauty.
“After we select the right size and texture of stone, we draw a rough sketch on it. Then we cut around it with a chisel and a hammer, and smooth the idols with a special set of chisels.”
The sculptor proceeds by drawing the finer details like ornaments, facial features and carves these out with a chisel.
The figurines are smoothed further with salt paper in the case of small pieces or with special tools, when it is a bigger sculpture.
Sometimes, these are painted black with ink. Electric drills are often used while making larger sculptures.
Row after row, lane after lane, the studios and shops in this seaside town, make and sell sculptures in stone, brass and wood. It is stone that seems to be most popular, while metal is a close runner-up.
As I leave the city, I pass the carved caves and the panels with ancient bass-relief work done by the sculptors of yore, and wonder if there is any similarity in techniques as well as the subjects of the sculptures.
Mythology and deities were an important part of the monuments, and so are they in the sculptures that are being made ever since the college was established in Mamallapuram.
Stone is still a favoured medium, as it was in the days of the Pallava Kings. While the styles of sculpture work might be different, I can’t help but wonder that both are about etching stories in stone.
