Nanjangud Srikanteshwara Temple

Nanjangud, known locally as “Dakshina Kashi” (the Varanasi of the South), takes its identity almost entirely from the sprawling Srikanteshwara temple on the banks of the Kabini river. The present structure grew over centuries under successive patrons, giving it an unusually large complex of gopurams, pillared halls and subsidiary shrines by South Indian temple standards.

A well-known local legend credits Tipu Sultan with donating a large emerald linga to the temple after his favourite elephant recovered from illness following a visit here — an often-cited example of the Mysore Sultanate’s patronage of Hindu institutions alongside its own faith. The Mysore Wodeyars, too, were regular patrons, and the temple’s car festival remains one of the region’s largest.

Getting there: Nanjangud is about 23 km south of Mysuru on NH766; the post office sits close to the temple’s eastern entrance.