MONUMENTAL TERRACOTTA
Photographs & Story: Sanjay Das

I am a Travel Photographer, majorly working on storytelling from different parts of India for the past two decades. During my journey I have made an effort to discover interesting known and unknown facts, and I have also found that to know them you need to walk off the beaten track. My objective is to create imagery that tells a story – in texture, in light and shadow and form a unique blend, which is spiritually as well as mentally rewarding.

While travelling through the length and breadth of Bengal, I discovered these Monumental Terracotta gems, which stand in oblivion with no focus and almost zero curiosity from common people. These temples with their amazing craftsmanship of terracotta panel, today after so many years, are still burning bright after overcoming gargantuan negligence caused by man and nature. These structures were an eye opener for me and marked the beginning of an intriguing journey, and another interesting story.


From the mid-15th Century, the art of baked soil took its finest shape on the walls of West Bengal temples. The Monumental Terracotta temples of Bengal were mainly built during a period when the region was witnessing a revival of Hinduism with particular focus on the cult of Krishna. This was after prolonged exposure to Islam. As a result, temples built during the sixteenth century and later, absorbed the monumental style of the traditional Muslim building forms and techniques. The temples can be classified into mainly the “Chala”, “Ratna” and “Dalaan” styles. The first has the curved “Bangla” roof and the curved cornice. The second is characterised by the towers, while the “Dalaan” has the flat roof. The vitality of the temples is not restricted to the architectural forms. The temple walls are covered with moulded baked clay panels. The early temples continued with the foliate and geometric designs of the fourteenth and fifteenth century mosques and tombs of Bengal. By the seventeenth century there evolved a rich iconography with religious and secular themes. Favourites were the epic battles of the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and of Chandi with the demons. The life of Krishna was another favourite. Secular themes included the warriors, hunters, musicians, tradesman, birds, animals, and day to day life scenes.

In a span of seven years during the time I was doing my survey and research on Bengal, I have been witness to the changes that these Monumental structures are undergoing. Within a short span these temples will be reduced to dust, and with that we will kill a piece of our pristine, glorious history. Unique in style and displaying some of the finest craftsmanship ever, these red brick structures fittingly deserve their place in the sun.