The Elephanta Caves , located on Elephanta Island, or Gharapuri, about 11 Km off the coast of the Gateway of India, Mumbai, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A visit to these caves, excavated probably in the 6 th century CE, is awe-inspiring, and also thought-provoking. Over the years, I have visited the caves a number of times, and also attended a number of talks by experts in the fields of art, history and archaeology on the caves. Together, they help me understand these caves, their art, and the people they were created for, just a little bit better. Every new visit, every new talk, every new article I read about the caves, fleshes out the image of what the island and the caves would have been like, at their peak. I last wrote about the caves on this blog, in 2011, almost exactly 11 years ago. Since then, my understanding of the caves has, I would like to think, marginally improved. Hence this attempt to write a new and updated post, trying to bring to life, the caves of Elephan
Their busy twittering is the one that I hear every morning, as I relax with my morning cup of coffee. Capturing them on camera hasn't been so easy though, which is why, when I saw one of them grooming himself on a tree right oopposite my window, I set aside my coffee and rushed for my camera! This is what I managed to photograph.... The Purple Rumped Sunbird....
I live in Mumbai, in a colony lucky enough to still have plenty of trees and open spaces. The best part of living here are the birds I see from my window, every single day. "Birds from my Window" is a series, where I regularly feature photos of birds I see from my home. To see all the posts in this series, click here.
Sunbirds are extremely tough to click as they continuously move and are tough to focus on... Good capture after all the patience...
ReplyDeleteThank you, Prasad! It was really tough to photograph, but I finally managed :D
DeleteBeautiful clicks and an awesome blog. !
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Tryst with Miles!
DeleteThank you so much, Tryst with Miles!
DeleteGreat pics!! What camera?
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child, I fostered a dream to become an ornithologist. I remember those days now as I read your blog. You have captured some impeccable pictures of the Sunbird. Thank you for sharing these pictures on the blog.
ReplyDelete