FilmIndia (May-Dec 1938)

A Cinematographer In Hampi By: Dr. PATHY. "La bataille de Talikota, en 1565, entraina la chute de l'empire de Vijayanagar' it was in Paris, in 1932 that I wrote this line in my thesis for a Doctorate Degree at the Sorbonne. Whenever I referred to that magnificent book 'Forgotten Empire' by Robert Sewell. I felt sorry at not having seen the ruins of Vijayanagar; but at the time I wrote this sen The Great Narasimha tence on the Battle of Talikota, I distinctly recollect my keen regret at having sailed from India without visiting Hampi. Four years later I was in Hampi. In a traveller's bungalow that was once a temple. My two assistant cameramen who accompanied me on this trip, attended to the unloading of the tongas. As it was almost dusk when we arrived there was little else to do but wait for dinner. I spent some time wandering around looking at the stone images scattered about the verandah of the 'dak Bungalow': many hooded cobras, with from one to seven heads, other Hindu deities and a particularly fine one of Vishnu reclining on a great cobra. Dinner passed with barely a word. Not one of us felt comfortable. Perhaps what made us feel strange was the mere fact that our dining hall was the corridor where, at one time, devocees prayed to their gods. Somewhat depressed we decided to get to bed early, as there was much to do the next day. Daybreak and we were on the road to the ruins. There is no death of events in Indian History, but some of them have left traces unparalleled. Hampi is an outstanding instance. On looking at the ruins of the 'Lotus Mahal' and the 'Queen's Bath' I remarked to my assistants that I was reminded of Pompeii. The history of Vijayanagar and the ruins that are in Hampi to-day have been described by the facile pens of talented authors and as 1 wandered in these ruins and gazed my 'wonder grew' that in spite of all material and literature available, Hampi had never been utilised as a subject for a documentary film. My luck for films was out on this trip! The day was very cloudy and though there were chances of a few breaks of sunshine I decided to take still photographs only. The palaces, the stone door, the stone trough, the throne platform and sati memorials unearthed by archaeologists **„**it wag aireacjy paSk midday. We returned to the 'dak bungalow' for lunch. Leaving our cine-camera and accessories behind and with just the 'Reflex' for photographs, we set out towards the Narasimha. Over half an hour was spent in photographing the gigantic Image in stone of the 'Man-Lion* avatar Dr. Pathy, India's well known news-reel and widely travelled cameraman. cf Vishnu. Pictures of details in sculpture, the huge cobra hood, the entire monolithic statute twentytwo feet in height with my assistant close by for comparison. From here we climbed a hillock and visited the Krishna Temple. The carvings on the pillars were exquisite but there was much more to see. so we took a few 'snaps' and followed the route indicated in the guide book. After a visit to the shrine ox Ganesh, the elephant headed god eight feet high, we came to the Jain Temples which adcrn the slone of the rising mound and are so different in their archi tecture from what one generally sees in Southern India. Here we spent a good deal of time and many filmpacks. Beiow, we could see the huge 'gopuram' of Pampapati Temple and the Car Street where for centuries past amidst thousands of pilgrims the juggernaut moved in all its grandeur. To this day, an annual car festival takes place and visitors and pilgrims from the Nizam's Dominions and the 'Ceded Districts' come to the ruins to participate in the fair. Virupaksha the lord The Stone Chariot 41