Chandrakant Sompura is an Indian architect. He was the chief architect of the Rama Temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Wiki/Biography
Chandrakant Sompura was born in 1943 in Gujarat, India (age 80 in 2023). He originally belonged to a small town called Palitana in Gujarat; however, his family moved to Ahmedabad in the 1960s due to work commitments.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′8″
Hair color: salt and pepper (semi-bald)
Eye color: black
family
Chandrakant Sompura was born into a family of architects. He is the 15th generation of this family. In 1949, his grandfather Prabhashankar Sompura designed the renovated Somnath Temple at Prabhas Patan, Gujarat. Prabhashankar Sompura is a Padma Shri recipient. His family is also famous for building the Akshardham temple complex in Gujarat, the Swaminarayan temple in Mumbai and the famous Birla temple in Kolkata.
Parents and siblings
His father Prabhakar Sompura designed the Somnath Temple in Gujarat and the Krishna Janmasthan Temple in Mathura, which is believed to be the birthplace of Lord Krishna.
wife and children
His husband is architect Shobha Sompura. He has two sons named Nikhil Sompura and Ashish Sompura. Both sons are in charge of their father’s construction business.
Chandrakant Sompura and his family
Chandrakant Sompura’s sons Nikhil (left) and Ashish (right)
Profession
He built more than 130 temples in India and abroad, including the Swami Narayan Temple in Gandhinagar, the Ambaji Temple in Palampur, the Akshardham Temple in Ahmedabad, etc. .
Ram temple construction
About 32 years before the Ram temple was built, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Ashok Singhal approached Sompura through the Birla family in 1989-90 to design a design for the Ram temple. Sompura, accompanied by Ashok Singhal, came to the site for the first time to assess the land. In an interview, when talking about his first visit to the temple ruins with Ashok Singhal, he said:
Mr. Ashok Singhal (former VHP leader) decided to build a temple here in 1988 and contacted GD Birla. Our family has worked with Mr. Birla for decades. So I got a call from Mr. Birla and he asked me to go to Delhi and visit Ayodhya with him and prepare the design of the temple. At that time, we were not allowed to bring measuring tapes. I was told to go and see it alone. It’s hard for me to imagine a temple without proper measurements. So, I counted the steps with my feet. I memorized all the steps – left to right, across, and replicated the design in a hall where I could take the correct measurements. ”
Chandrakant prepared the design of the Rama temple in 1989. Later, considering the scale of the project, Sompura and his sons Ashish and Nikhil enhanced the design of the temple. In November 2019, Sompura mentioned that approximately 40% of the stone carvings had been completed. He claimed that the project will be completed within 24 to 30 months after the foundation stone is laid.
Chandrakant Sompura at Ram Mandir construction site
According to Sompura, the Ram temple he built is “the first temple in the world to undergo 3D structural analysis before construction” to ensure it can withstand an earthquake measuring eight on the Richter scale. On January 22, 2024, the consecration ceremony was held at Lamu Temple.
#watch | After the “Pran Pratishtha” ceremony, the Ayodhya Ram Temple is brilliantly lit pic.twitter.com/UrMFdEQUgQ
— ANI (@ANI) January 22, 2024
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- 2019: Bharat Gaurav Award
- 2021: Ram Janambhoomi Shilpi Award
Facts/Trivia
- Chandrakant Sompura is considered one of the most influential temple architects in India. He played an important role in reviving and preserving ancient Indian temple architecture and culture. He was also a source of inspiration to many young architects and students, encouraging them to choose temple design as a career path.
- He had no formal architectural training.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education