OdishaLIVE Bureau
A contingent of locals and foreign tourists joined the Ekamra Walks Old Town Circuit and enjoyed their time discovering the architectural journey of the Kalingan temple artists, Odissi dance at Art Vision and medicinal plants at Ekamra Van, on the western banks of the Bindusagar Lake. The Old Town Circuit of Ekamra Walks helps to educate the visitors with the evolution of the temple architecture and style of the Kalingan era and how it progressed from Seventh Century AD to 15th and 16th Century AD.
The visitors saw monuments like Mukteswar, Parasurameswar, Swarnajaleswar, Kotitirtheswar, Bindusagar, Ananatavasudev, Doodhwala Dharamsala, Lingaraj, Sari Deula and Ekamra Van besides experiencing a mesmerizing performance of Odissi at Art Vision.
Matjaz Kovse, from Slovenia, a Professor of Mathematics at IIT Bhubaneswar joined the Ekamra walks and the Monks, Kings and Caves at Udayagiri and Khandagiri. Professor Matjaz, said “it is a very proud thing for this city to have such beautiful structures with distinct architectural style and age-proof engineering and techniques. I really enjoyed the dance and the medicinal plant garden as well.’’
Anna Niessner from Munich, Germany, a researcher on Odisha also liked the walk very much as she joined it after a long time. In fact, she had visited the Old Town Circuit nearly a year ago.
“I am very happy to know that the initiative has come a long way since December 2016 and now has two circuits i.e. Old Town and Udayagiri and Khandagiri, under its ambit” said Professor Arun Kumar Rath Chairman, Centre for Corporate Governance and Reforms, IMI, Delhi.
“I really enjoyed my time at Ekamra Van, the medicinal plant garden with its architectural design and plants with specific use for male, female and paediatric usage,’’ said Subhra Priyadarshini , who is doing her MBBS from city-based medical college.
Pritosh Kumar, US-based IT professional termed the heritage walk in the Old City area as an interesting experience to know the traditional temple building style, architecture and its influence over other regions of the world. “I will definitely tell my other friends to join the event,’’ he added. General Manager (Operations) Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited, Bijay Kumar Swain, also joined the heritage tour.
