Vignettes of the Past

Published on: 21/03/2018

Photograph: Sheshadri Vasan

During the first two days during my recent visit, I did something new in Hampi and that was the wildlife, which I have already shared in my previous blog. But, that was not the end of it. Hampi gave me more and surprisingly a different perspective compared to what I had always seen. I call this vignettes of the past.

Most of us know that Hampi, a world heritage center identified by UNESCO, is a small attractive township in the northern part of the Karnataka state. It is a treat for a person like me, who is interested in Photography, mythology, history, culture, art or just nature. I have always been fascinated by the stories, which I have heard and read about the rich culture and heritage of Hampi. Stories about the Great King Krishnadevaraya, his administrative prowess, his ministers especially Tenali Ramakrishna and his witty intelligence…. are just unforgettable.

During my visits to Hampi in the past, I have gone back numerous times to the same historical temples and archaeological ruins either to photograph them or sometimes to just sit back and enjoy the tranquility of the place. Every time, I have been offered with a different perspective and this time as well, I had something very interesting and different to explore and photograph.

Photograph: Sheshadri Vasan

I decided to spend the good part of my evening, the last one for this trip, in a place called Hemakoota hills. It has a splendid collection of moderately sized monuments with several important inscriptions and is the best-preserved example of early and even the pre-Vijayanagar era.

This hillock has many vantage points, which offers a panoramic view of the fertile agricultural valley on one side, to some parts of mainland Hampi on the other. The evening was very dramatic as the sun was playing hide and seek with me using the clouds to his advantage. This gave my camera a good amount of work and I chose to select a place where I could capture a few monuments in a different perspective and this is exactly what I had planned.

At around 5:30 pm, as the sun started going down I wanted to explore something new and started driving towards the main land. People were enjoying their evening snack on the street side shops, some were sipping the fresh tender coconut and a few were enjoying their walk. As I drove, I reached an open field, a very calm place where I could see few local farmers returning from their sugar cane fields with the birds flying back to their nest, in the skies. In the middle of this open field, I found a stone structure with pillars and I guess I had my subject for the evening photo shoot, the Sunset. I set up my camera and started shooting the sun going down and every shot was unique and blissful. I am sure I would have explored much more if only I had more time as I had to return to Bangalore the next day.

Hampi, with its vast beauty and a potential to offer something new every time, will surely call me time and again and I will be back very soon!!!

Sheshadri Vasan

Sheshadri Vasan is a Business Management professional, an avid wildlife enthusiast and a hobbyist natural history photographer. He is from Bangalore and loves to travel to the jungles in his free time. He has visited most of the National parks and Tiger Reserves across the country and abroad along with his wife, who is equally passionate about nature and wildlife. Seshadri’s work has won him accolades from Karnataka State Government’s Tourism and the Forest departments. His work has been published in many nature & wildlife magazines and also in national print media like the Times of India and television. He can be contacted on: vasan.sheshadri@gmail.com

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Vignettes of the Past

Sheshadri Vasan