THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Muslim radicals have prevented 80-year-old G Gopalakrishnan from making a historic mosque, a symbol of religious harmony. Gopalakrishnan, who has been constructing places of worship of all religions across India, was stopped from inscribing Quranic verses in Malayalam on a granite slab to be installed in Tajmahal mosque at Karunagapally, Kerala.
He has been writing a book—Quran I have Read—to sensitise people about the holy book’s relevance for harmony in times of terror. Gopalakrishnan dedicated the last 60 years to constructing religious institutions of various faiths—100 mosques, four churches and a temple across the state. “People of different castes and creeds have co-existed for several centuries in India. There were aberrations. But India has shown the world that people of different faiths can live in harmony,” he said.
In 1960, Gopalakrishnan planned to model a mosque after the Safdarjung Tomb in Delhi, though using non-traditional materials. Using peels of mosambi fruit, he built identical segments, underlining his theory that the prefabrication method would be more effective to build the mosque.
G Gopalakrishnan might not have a wall in his home teeming with glittering awards, but he has painted bold strokes of religious harmony with his life. Hailing from Palayam in Kerala, he has dedicated 60 summers to construct 100 mosques, four churches and a temple.
For Gopalakrishnan, religion fades into the background while constructing abodes of gods. “Indian culture can respect and accommodate all religions. People of different castes and creed have co-existed for centuries in India. There were aberrations, but India has shown that people of different faiths can live in harmony,” he said.
The snubbing he received from his father G Govindan was the turning point in his life. In 1960, Govindan was involved in the construction of Palayam mosque, and T P Kuttiamu, a former chief engineer of the state government and the secretary of the Palayam mosque, wanted him to model it after Safdarjung Tomb in New Delhi. “My father decided to concrete the dome step-by-step. But I suggested using prefabricated segments for the 30-foot dome. He hit me with the mason’s scale,” said Gopalakrishnan.
However, Gopalakrishnan proved his point to his father. Using the peels of mosambi, he built identical segments, underlining his theory that prefabrication was more effective to build the mosque. It took seven years to complete the Palayam mosque because of dearth of funds. Gopalakrishnan’s next challenge was to construct Beemapally in the capital. Constructing the structure, including a 132-foot tower on loose soil without disturbing the tombs of two saints, was a massive challenge. The work began in 1966 and took 18 years to finish. His major works are Kollurvila juma mazjid, Kollam, Tajmahal mosque, Karunagapllay and Erumeli mosque.