Mamallapuram, also known as Mahabalipuram, is a town in Chengalpattu district in the southeastern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, best known for the UNESCO World Heritage Site of 7th- and 8th-century Hindu Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram. It is one of the famous tourist sites in India. The ancient name of the place is Thirukadalmallai.
Perungudi is a neighbourhood of Chennai in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is situated about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south of Adyar. It is bordered on two sides by the Old Mahabalipuram Road and the Perungudi lake. It is situated on the Old Mahabalipuram IT Expressway right in middle of an Information Technology (IT) Estate. It is between Taramani and Thoraipakkam and parallel to Kottivakkam and Palavakkam in the East Coast Road.
Buxa Tiger Reserve is a Tiger reserve and National park in northern West Bengal, India, covering an area of 760 km2 (290 sq mi). In altitude, it ranges from 60 m (200 ft) in the Gangetic Plains to 1,750 m (5,740 ft) bordering the Himalayas in the north. At least 284 bird species inhabit the reserve. Mammals present include Asian elephant, gaur, Sambar deer, clouded leopard, Indian leopard.
Indian rock-cut architecture is more various and found in greater abundance in that country than any other form of rock-cut architecture around the world. Rock-cut architecture is the practice of creating a structure by carving it out of solid natural rock. Rock that is not part of the structure is removed until the only rock left makes up the architectural elements of the excavated interior. Indian rock-cut architecture is mostly religious in nature.
East Coast Road (ECR), combination of SH-49, NH-332A, NH-32, officially known as Mutthamizh Arignar Kalaignar Road, is a two-lane highway in Tamil Nadu, India, built along the coast of the Bay of Bengal connecting Tamil Nadu's state capital city Chennai with Kanyakumari via Puducherry, Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Sirkali, Thirukkadaiyur, Tharangambadi, Karaikal, Nagore, Nagapattinam, Thiruthuraipoondi, Muthupet, Adirampattinam, Manora, Manamelkudi, Mimisal, Ramanathapuram, Thoothukudi, Tiruchendur, Uvari, Kudankulam. The total length of the road is about 777 km between Chennai and Kanyakumari.
"Seven Pagodas" has served as a nickname for the south Indian city of Mamallapuram, also called Mahabalipuram, since the first European explorers reached it. The phrase "Seven Pagodas" refers to a belief that has circulated in India, Europe, and other parts of the world for over eleven centuries. The group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, including the Shore Temple built in the 8th century under the reign of Narasimhavarman II, stand at the shore of the Bay of Bengal. Legend has it that six other temples once stood with it.
State Highway 49A also known as Rajiv Gandhi Salai and Rajiv Gandhi IT Expressway or just IT Expressway is a major road connecting Chennai, Tamil Nadu with Mahabalipuram in Chengalpattu district, Tamil Nadu. It is 45 km long and was earlier known as the Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR). The road starts from Madhya Kailash Temple on Sardar Patel Road in South-East Chennai and terminates on East Coast Road near Mahabalipuram.
The Sharda River, also called Kali river and Mahakali River, originates at Kalapani in the Himalayas at an elevation of 3,600 m (11,800 ft) in the Pithoragarh district in Uttarakhand, India. It flows along Nepal's western border with India and has a basin area of 14,871 km2 (5,742 sq mi). It joins Ghaghra River, a tributary of the Ganges. It takes the name Kali River from the union of the two streams at Gunji as it flows through the hills. After Brahmadev Mandi near Tanakpur, it enters the Terai plains, where it is called Sharda River.
The Tiger Cave is a rock-cut Hindu temple complex located in the hamlet of Saluvankuppam near Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu, India. It gets its name from the carvings of tiger heads on the mouth of a cave which forms a part of the complex. The Tiger Cave is considered to be one of the Mahabalipuram rock-cut temples constructed by the Pallavas in the 8th century AD. The site is located on the Bay of Bengal coast and is a popular picnic spot and tourist destination. The temple is maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The discovery of an inscription on a rocky outcrop in the Tiger Cave complex in 2005 led to the excavation of a Sangam period Subrahmanya Temple close by.
The Murugan Temple at Saluvankuppam, Tamil Nadu, India, is a shrine dedicated to Tamil Hindu deity Murugan. Archaeologists believe that the shrine, unearthed in 2005, consists of two layers: a brick temple constructed during the Sangam period and a granite Pallava temple dating from the 8th century CE and constructed on top of the brick shrine making it the oldest temple in india. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) team which conducted the excavation believe that brick temple could be the oldest of its kind to be discovered in Tamil Nadu.
The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram is a collection of 7th- and 8th-century CE religious monuments in the coastal resort town of Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu, India and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, about 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of Chennai.
Varaha Cave Temple is a rock-cut cave temple located at Mamallapuram, on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal in Kancheepuram District in Tamil Nadu, India. It is part of the hill top village, which is 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) to the north of the main Mahabalipurm sites of rathas and the Shore Temple. It is an example of Indian rock-cut architecture dating from the late 7th century. The temple is one of the finest testimonial to the ancient Hindu rock-cut cave architecture, out of many such caves also called mandapas. Part of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, the temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as inscribed in 1984 under criteria i, ii, iii and iv. The most prominent sculpture in the cave is that of the Hindu god Vishnu in the incarnated form of a Varaha or boar lifting Bhudevi, the mother earth goddess from the sea. Also carved are many mythical figures.
The Shore Temple is a complex of temples and shrines that overlooks the shore of the Bay of Bengal. It is located in Mahabalipuram, about 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of Chennai in Tamil Nadu, India.
Bhima Ratha is a monument in the Pancha Rathas complex at Mahabalipuram, on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, in the Kancheepuram district of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is an example of monolith Indian rock-cut architecture. Dating from the late 7th century, it is attributed to the reign of King Mahendravarman I and his son Narasimhavarman I of the Pallava Kingdom. The entire complex is under the auspices of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and is one of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984.
Mahishasuramardhini Mandapa is an example of Indian rock-cut architecture dating from the late 7th century, of the Pallava dynasty. It is a rock-cut cave temple located on a hill, near a lighthouse, along with other caves in Mamallapuram. Mamallapuram, also popularly known as Mahabalipuram, is a small village to the south of Chennai, in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The temple is part of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 1984. This Cave Temple has many interesting architectural features of which three exquisitely carved reliefs on the cave walls of three sanctums are prominent. One is of Vishnu reclining on the seven hooded serpent, Adisesha, another of Durga, the main deity of the cave temple Durga slaying the buffalo headed demon Mahishasura, and the third sanctum also has a sculpture of Shiva.
Ganesha Ratha is a temple in Kancheepuram district, Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of ten rathas ("chariots") carved out of pink granite within the group of monuments of the Pallava Period at Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO-inscribed World Heritage Site since 1984. The ratha is an example of monolith Indian rock-cut architecture dating from the late seventh century during the reign of King Mahendravarman I and his son Narasimhavarman I. Initially constructed with a Shiva Linga, it is now deified with a Ganesha deity after the linga was removed.
Panchapandava Cave Temple is a monument at Mahabalipuram, on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, in the Kancheepuram district of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The mandapa is part of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram. It is the largest cave temple in Mahabalipuram. It is an example of Indian rock-cut architecture dating from the late 7th century. The temple is one of the finest testimonial to the ancient Vishwakarma Sthapathis, of rock-cut cave architecture, out of many such caves also called mandapas. Part of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, the temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as inscribed in 1984 under criteria i, ii, iii and iv.
The Olakkannesvara Temple is in Mahabalipuram town, overlooking the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal in Kancheepuram District in Tamil Nadu, India. Like the Shore Temple, the Olakkannesvara Temple is a structural temple. Built in the 8th century, it is situated directly above the Mahishasuramardini mandapa on a hillock which provides scenic views of the town. As the area is within a high security zone because of a nuclear power station a few kilometres to its south, photography is prohibited. The Olakkannesvara Temple is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a Mahishasura temple. It is dedicated to an incarnation of Shiva. It is one of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram that were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984.
Mandapa of Krishna or Krishna Mandapam is a monument at Mahabalipuram, on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, in the Kancheepuram district of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is part of the Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed in 1984. It is located on a hillock next to the open rock relief of Descent of the Ganges (Mahabalipuram).
