The Mystery of Madhavarm

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The locals claim that a Siddhar lived here till a few years ago. But, there is no proof for the same.

We find the hoarding of an Angala Parameswari temple. But, this is technically a Mandapa. And, the newly formed temple has nothing to do with this structure.

The devotees gather here every Thursday to perform Sai Bhajan. A few local astrologers use this place to tell your fortune, what they call "arul vakku". But, all these recently started practices have no relationship with this ancient structure.

Is this a temple? No! It is just a mandapa of some other temple. Based on the icons of this mandapa, the temple that owns the mandapa must be a Shiva temple.

So, which temple is that? There is no nearby Shiva temple. The nearest temple is the Pallava-period Kailasanatha temple, located about 2 km from here. Except for this, there is no other mandapa in the vicinity of Madhavaram.

For me, the structure remains a mystery. Who built this, and for what purpose? Based on the style of architecture and iconography, I believe it might have been built in the 1600s or 1700s. The mandapa has 20 pillars in four rows. It is evident that walls on three sides were constructed on the rear side of the mandapa to make it more like a shrine. 

The images of fish and snakes adorn the ceiling. Some of them depict the lunar eclipse. The pillars have various icons. Most of them could not be identified. The other pillars have the icons of Ganesha, Kartikeya, Rama, Matsya, Hanuman, a few females and a few Rishis.

Located on the opposite side of Agarsen College in Madhavaram Milk Colony, known as "Siddhar Temple" nowadays, it remains a mystery for me. 

Happy travelling. 








Location: Madhavaram, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

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