Valluvar
Kottam, located at the meeting of the Kodambakkam High road and
the Village road, is one of the modern landmarks of modern Chennai,
Tamilnadu state, South India.
Valluvar
Kottam was inaugurated in 1976, it is a grand auditorium devoted
to the poet-saint Thiruvalluvar. The poet had written a celebrated
epic known as the Thirukurral.
The
memorial to the poet-saint Tiruvalluvar is shaped like a temple
chariot and is, in fact, the replica of the temple chariot in
Thiruvarur. A life-size statue of the saint has been installed
in the chariot which is 33m tall.
The
133 chapters of his famous work Thirukkural have been depicted
in bas-relief in the front hall corridors of the chariot. All
the 1330 verses of the poet’s epic are depicted on the granite
pillars, which surround the auditorium. The auditorium at Valluvar
Kottam is said to be the largest in Asia and can accommodate about
4000 people. It stands as a modern memorial to the great poet
who represents the glorious culture of the Tamils.
There
is a 101-feet high temple chariot structure with a life-size image
of the poet in it. This chariot is a replica of the temple car
of Thiruvarur in Tamil Nadu. The base of the chariot shows in
bas-relief the 133 chapters of the Thirukkural. Over 3,000 blocks
of stone were used to create this memorial to Tamil culture. Visitors
are amazed when they behold this massive monument standing without
a single pillar, functioning as an auditorium seating 4000 people.
