The most anticipated temple architecture of the decade, Ram Mandir of Ayodhya is set to start its construction under a legendary architect Chandrakant B Sompura of Sompura Temple Architecture, Ahmedabad. SURFACES REPORTER found some interesting details about the architect.
He is 78 years old, 15th generation of the family of temple architects that have designed over 200 such structures, including the Akshardham, 108 Bhaktivihar, and Somnath temples of Gujarat.
On August 5, 2020, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi have laid a symbolic silver brick in the sanctum sanctorum which is the inner sanctuary of the temple site.
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It is said, when the architect went to recce the site of the temple several years back, there was a lot of security so he had to disguise and enter the premise in the form of a devotee. Commenting on the events of Ashok Singhal approaching Ar Sompura three decades ago, Ashish Sompura shared, “They met and discussed its construction and then went to Ayodhya to survey the land. Since the security there was tight, my father had to disguise himself as a devotee and measure the area with his footsteps to make the master plan”.
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The Ram temple will be built in the Nagara style of architecture. Of the different styles of temple architecture in India, the Nagara architecture of northern India and the Dravidian architecture of southern India are most common. The Ram Temple will comprise of three stories with pillars and domes. It will be double the size of the previous planned design, as revamped by the Supreme Court of India, on the holy ground of the birth of Lord Ram, spread over 5 acres.
Sampura Temple Architecture has started designing the temple around 30 years back. Chandrakant Sompura is the grandson of Padmashree Prabhashankarbhai Oghadbhai, who had designed the Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar and Somnath Temple known as Somnath Maha Meru Prasad.
The Ram Temple project is being taken care by two of the youngest members of this clan, Nikhil Sompura (55) and Ashish Sompura (49), under the wings of their father Chandrakant Sompura (78), who now works from home due to his age and ongoing COVID19 pandemic.
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Chandrakant Sompura has designed 131 temples, along with his sons. This includes the Swami Narayan Temple in Gandhinagar, Ambaji Temple in Palanpur and several others. The Ram Temple would be continuity on a greater scale, of immense values in life as cherished on getting Best Architect of the year 1997 award by the architect.
Sompura Temple Architecture also holds the Guineas Book of world record for his creation of Shri Akshar Purshottam Swaminarayan Temple at London.
The Artisans and Architects involved in the construction of temples of Nagar shaily (Nagara style) hail from communities associated with respective style. In Northern India, the Sompuras are involved in designing and building mostly Nagar style of Temples, clearly being the descendents of Prabhashankar, the learned protagonist of the same.
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Based on Architect Sompura’s design, artisans have been working in several locations, carving the stones for the temple construction. According to the architect, early 40 percent of the stone carvings have been completed and he is confident that the construction will be completed within 24 to 30 months after the foundation has been laid. Larsen and Toubro is appointed for the construction of the largest temple of the Hindu deity Ram in the city of Ayodhya in northern India.