Love at First Sight...

Hello again Phantoms,


Now last Sunday, as you must be well aware now, I was in Nagercoil and all of a sudden someone suggested that we go to Padmanabhapuram Palace in the morning. But the others were more interested in just lazing around and chatting as it was a Sunday. Now, I turned on all my powers of nagging and got everyone ready and made that trip happen. As much as I love simply sitting down and talking aimlessly I love the outdoors and the chance to explore new stuff more and I wasn't going to miss this one.

And I am so Happy that I somehow managed to get there as the place was so beautiful. It was love at first sight for me. The place was quiet, not crowded and filled with architectural beauty. Now when I say Architectural beauty do not expect the grandeur of the palaces of Rajasthan. The place is very humble compared to the monuments of the North but it is historically very rich.

It has the traditional Kerala styled architecture with slated roofs and extensive wood-work. What is surprising is the entire flooring is not done with stones or brick but by a concoction of coconut water and fruit of some special trees and a whole lot of fine stuff so that the place is kept cool always.

I always used to think that there were some similarities between the Chinese Architecture and the Keralite Architecture, well this is perhaps because Kerala had extensive trade and commerce with China in the past. These similarities are well pronounced in this palace where the wood-carvings on the roof the King's chambers are beautifully done with dragons spitting fire. The palace also has quite a collection of furniture presented to the Kings by Chinese traders.



Being a person interested in the South Indian classical arts, I was defintiely thrilled to walk in the corridors through which Raja Swati Tirunal,the great Carnatic Music Composer and Vadivelu, one of the Tanjore Quartet who formulated Sadhir(Bharatanatyam of today) once walked.

Of course, the "Kanadi thara" or the glass floored hall caught my attention. It is a floor in the palace made of all the stuff I mentioned above and polished to such perfection that one can see one's face on the floor(am not joking). The place seemed vaguely familiar and later I came to know that the famous dance sequence of Shobana's for Manichithrathazhu was filmed here. Now that explained why the Palace seemed so familiar.

The palace has an extensive collection of paintings which are so beautiful, the entire Rasleela of Krishna is depicted through beautiful glass framed paintings. Also the important events of the many kings' reign painted on big canvases by artists of yore are displayed.

The Palace has devoted a separate section to showcase the sculpture work from the area and it is huge and has some very beautiful pieces of art. I wish to go back again and explore the place not having to worry about it getting late.

Then for all those shopaholics out there, the shops outside sell numerous beautiful handicraft works at reasonable prices. I bought a nice ram made of teak wood(or atleast i was told that) as a gift for the best Arian in the world - Me!!!

Let me sum it all up. If you love Art in any of its various forms Padmanabhapuram is a must-see place for you! If you are not much into the arts still you will find this Palace to be an interesting place as all my skeptical friends who thought that palaces are not their kind of place too enjoyed this one.


So , If any of you phantoms visit Padmanabhapuram do let me know we can have a long or short chat about this place which I LOVE.....!!!


Bye again Phantoms....