In his talk, "Chola Murals of Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur: A New Perspective”, P S Sriraman will introduce the objectives, methodology and outcomes of ASI's photo documentation of the murals. He will then share newer interpretations of some of the panels, while answering questions like: "Are the murals decorative or a tool like the inscriptions of the temple recording contemporary events or simply Chitrasalas of images?”
The online Talk in English is at 5.30 pm IST on Saturday, October 4, 2025.
About The Speaker:
P. S. Sriraman’s association with the Archaeological Survey of India began in 1984 as a PG Diploma student. Subsequently, he joined ASI in a permanent capacity in 1987. He has conducted intensive fieldwork in the Kolar region for documenting its archaeological wealth besides other similar initiatives in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. He has participated in excavations at Banahalli, Kolar district a proto-historic site, at Gingee, a medieval site, and at Keeladi and Kodumanal, early historic sites in Tamil Nadu.
He has managed the museums at Lothal, Fort St George Museum, Chennai and Hampi, where he organised extensive re-organisation work. He had a brief stint in Agra where he was instrumental in displaying all excavated antiquities including the Jain images and Mughal artefacts in the Fatehpur Sikri museum. The Kalibangan museum was reorganised under his guidance. He has undertaken several conservation projects in the Forts of Chittorgarh, Kumbalgarh and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan and many other monuments in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Sriraman was instrumental in the design and execution of the documentation of the Chola murals in the Brihadisvara temple, Thanjavur and also the Kangara murals at Tira Sujanpur. He has authored two books: Chōl̲a Murals: Documentation and Study of the Chōl̲a Murals of Bṛihadīśvara Temple, Thanjavur, (2010), Murals of Tira Sujanpur (2013), published by Archaeological Survey of India.
