Among the many amazing things of our country is the heritage all around us. One example of this is the Kolaramma temple in Kolar, near Bangalore, Karnataka.

Kolar is a town about 70 kilometres from Bangalore, possibly most famous for the Kolar Gold Fields in the vicinity. The Gold Fields are now shut, but Kolar does have more to offer to visitors. And one such place to visit is the Kolaramma temple in the heart of the town.

I have spent over 6 years in Bangalore in two stints now and I do not mind admitting that I had not heard of this temple until a casual search a few months back. I finally got to visit this place one weekend in July.

The temple is over a thousand years old, built by the Cholas. It is now maintained by the ASI, but it’s still in active worship. Unfortunately, the temple was closed when I visited, which meant that I could not get to go inside the sanctum sanctorum. But an Internet search reveals that the presiding deity is Goddess Durga, in her avatar of Mahishasuramardini, also called Kolaramma by the local people.

Entrance to Kolaramma temple

Kolaramma temple

The temple is relatively small in size. There are some ornate carvings along the doorway. I could also see a stone with inscriptions, which reportedly date from the time of the Cholas.

Carvings – Kolaramma temple

Chola period inscription – Kolaramma temple

Just as an aside, while doing a parikrama of the temple, I could view this old house bordering the temple. For a city person like me, it was just so nice to see such a typical old house…