ಕ್ಷಣಪ್ರಭಾ - Kshanaprabhaa

I first found his voice three years ago through the mobile phone ringtone of a colleague and friend of mine, and I have become a huge fan ever since. It was a wait of three years to see him perform live, and the wish was fulfilled yesterday, as Anand Bhate delighted the hearts of music lovers of Bangalore with his soul stirring singing at the Chowdaiah Memorial Hall , as part of " Sangeet Sambhram ", on the occasion of 8th anniversary of founding " Sapthak ". Shree Bhate, a disciple of Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi , is continuing the Kirana Gharana tradition, and is dedicating time to his divine music even as he juggles with his profession in Technology (he holds a Masters degree in Computer Science). Yesterday's concert was a dream come true for me personally, as this was my first time listening to him live, and also my first time attending any live Hindustani concert, being a more staunch follower of Carnatic music for long. Acco...

This Mallikarjuna Temple in the town of Basaralu in Madya district of Karnataka has made it into the short list of 15 must visit Hoysala temples in the seminal book "A Complete Guide to Hoysala Temples" by Gerard Foekema, and just one glimpse at the temple would tell you why. As Foekema touches on the "completeness" of the temples, and states that there are these other temples from the Hoysala period which are far more "complete" in terms of plan, execution, symmetry and carvings than the more celebrated temples at Belur and Halebidu, the Mallikarjuna Temple at Basaralu holds a mirror to his observations. Situated on the road from Nagamangala to Mandya, this little known town's only shot at fame is this temple constructed in 1234 AD , under the reign of Veera Narasimha the II , by the king's commander in memory of his father Malleyanayaka. The Mallikarjuna Shiva Linga inside the main sanctum is said to have been brought in from Srisailam and...

If you find the  ekakuta  Lakshmi Narayana Temple on the one end of the town of Sindhaghatta , the other end promises to showcase the dvikuta Sangameshwara - Janneshwara Temple , in line with most other celebrated townships of the Hoysala period - containing worshiping places for the followers of both Shiva and Vishnu. The temple is on the lines of Aghalaya ( trikuta ) and Govindanahalli ( panchakuta ), with two Shiva linga sanctums in a row inside the same temple. One of them is identified as Sangameshwara and the other as Janneshwara (historically) or Jangameshwara (currently). The outer walls are again uncarved, similar to the Vaishnava temple in the town, but the inner carvings - primarily the Bhuvaneshwari designs on the roof tops are extremely intricate and retain the beauty even to this day. A great example of the perfection shown by the sculptors of the period is in the carvings of the big Nandi (the celestial bull) statues inside the temple, w...

Sindhaghatta is a small town near Krishnarajapete in Mandya district, Karnataka, close to the state highway of Channarayapatna - Mysore. The town has two little known Hoysala temples, one of them being the still worshiped Lakshmi Narayana Temple . It is a single shrine temple with the inner carvings indicating the same beauty one gets to see in most well known Hoysala temples, but the outer walls are devoid of any carvings. The main deity is Lord Lakshmi Narayana, a form of Vishnu who is carrying Lakshmi on his lap, as can be seen in Adagur . The main deity is amazingly serene and clearly indicates the mastery of the sculptors who could have only belonged to the Hoysala period. Inscriptions found in and around the town date the temple back to the times of king Vishnuvardhana , but according to those records, the temple continued to receive funds even during the reins of Veera Ballala II. Year 1179 AD appears to be the time of completion of construction of the temple, according to th...