HYDERABAD: The finely carved teakwood doors of the Ram Mandir complex in Ayodhya are now largely in place, marking the completion of a major phase of work by Hyderabad-based Anuradha Timber International. With the doors installed across the sprawling temple campus, the firm has moved on to building a new timber shrine, expected to be ready within 60 days.
Managing partner Chadalavada Sharath Babu told TNIE that the company designed, crafted and installed all 240 doors, thresholds and windows at the complex. These include doors for the main entrance, the sanctum sanctorum of Ram Lalla, surrounding shrines and the four-sided parikota gateways. Gold-plated doors on the ground floor were completed ahead of the Prana Pratishtha, while wooden doors for the first floor and other shrines, including the Saptarishi Mandap, Lakshman and Hanuman temples, have since been installed. Massive parikota gates, large enough for trucks to pass through, are also in place.
Calling the assignment a “civilisational responsibility”, Sharath Babu said the doors were crafted to endure for centuries. More than 200 skilled artisans from Mahabalipuram and other parts of Tamil Nadu worked round the clock for nearly three years. “Despite tight deadlines, we followed traditional, undocumented practices without compromise,” he said.
Choice of wood
The doors were made using about 150 tonnes of premium Balharshah teak from Maharashtra, selected on the recommendation of the Forest Research Institute, Dehradun. Of nearly 40,000 trees surveyed, only about 300 — each over 100 years old and free of defects — met the required standards, with just 20–30% of usable wood per log.
Unlike conventional temple doors, which are about 1.5 inches thick, the Ram Mandir doors are four inches thick, designed to last over 1,000 years. Durability comes from traditional joinery, deep mortise-and-tenon joints and the absence of metal components.
Structural engineer Girish Shahashara Bhoje served as quality in-charge, assessing load, weather resistance and even acoustics. Designs by architect Ashish Sompura were vetted by Tata Consulting Engineers, executed under Larsen & Toubro and reviewed by the Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee.
Anuradha Timber supplied around 4,000–5,000 cubic feet of teakwood, with each door costing between `40 lakh and `45 lakh. Sharath Babu said seeing the doors installed at the Ram Mandir was a moment of pride for Telangana.