Work is worship for celluloid art director Anand Sai Viswakarma, who has award-winning Tollywood movies such as Yamadonga and Tholi Prema in his répertoire. He seems to have found his calling in designing temples. His new project is conceiving the design of the main temple in Telangana’s new pet project, Yadadri Temple.
The 42-year-old Anand, who is engaged in reviving the temple, had been associated with a previous spiritual project. “I had designed the Chinna Jeeyar Swamy Trust building in Karimnagar and was approached by the Telangana government to design the Yadadri project,” he says. His first impression was the dilapidated condition of the temple on the Yadadri hill. He intends to bring back the grandeur that the temple deserves.
Anand’s mandate is to design not just the main temple, but also other accompanying sections such as vratha peetham (platform meant for religious rituals) and satram (choultry, a resting place).
Synapses firing with excitement, it took him just an hour to decide upon the core concept for Yadadri. “I figured that the main temple must stand out as the rest of the mandapas (ornate gateways). After the concept was approved by the temple authorities, he and his team went on to work on the details. Anand is a commerce graduate, who became a self-taught art director through stints in Tollywood and taking a few architectural and designing courses.
Belief is an integral part of Anand’s temple project. He believes that when he is involved in a daivyakaryam (god’s work), he needs to be completely dedicated. “Yadadri is the pride of Telangana. At every step, I had to think of which element to add in its architecture that would make it one of its kind in the world. One idea was to remake the entire temple, including the garbha gudi (sanctum sanctorum), completely out of stone which is unheard of in modern architecture,” says the movie designer.
When completed, while the new temple is supposed to be eye-catching, it must also adhere to the religious principles, he believes. “The set design in my films such as Badrinath or Yamadonga are all temple-themed,” he says.
Anand’s works are influenced by the ancient architecture of South India, mainly from the Pallava and Kakatiya dynasties. “The temple will be a mix of all these styles,” says the artist, who has dedicated his life to designing temples and does not plan on going back to the film industry.
Besides his professional interest in temples, Anand’s personal faith drives his work. “I am a committed Vaishnava, and I am happy and thrilled to have the privilege and opportunity to work on this temple.”
Anand is aided by over a 1,000 sculptors commissioned by the state, who are working day and night to make his holy vision complete.
“Besides Yadadri, I am doing designs for the new capital city of Amaravathi. I have also been approached to create the designs of the Bhadrachalam temple. I believe a never-ending pilgrimage has started for me now.”With god on his side, the saffron-clad one-time art director’s faith is etched in stone from here to eternity.
The past and the project
Located on a hillock in the Yadagirigutta town of Nalgonda district of Telangana, the temple of Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy is believed to exist since the time of sages. After the name of Yadagirigutta was officially changed to Yadadri, the Telangana government took it upon itself to redesign and renovate the temple, which was left in ruins over the years. The temple, being constructed in an 11-acre complex, will consist of seven domes, including a 100-foot main dome, a 1,400-acre tourist facility comprising cottages, multilevel parking, and housing for the temple priests.