Long weekend, flew into Hubli, drove to Badami.
This is Chalukya country. The cave temples at Badami are carved into red sandstone cliffs above a green tank. The craftsmanship in the panels - a reclining Vishnu, a dancing Shiva with eighteen arms in perfect count - is precise in a way that feels almost architectural. Sixth-century caves that feel very alive.
Pattadakal the next morning. Eight temples in a UNESCO cluster on the Malaprabha riverbank. The Virupaksha temple here was built to celebrate a Chalukya victory over the Pallavas, with sculptors brought from Kanchi as part of the spoils of war. History as architecture.
Northern Karnataka doesn’t get enough attention.