Another view of the Martand sun temple - Kashmir 2010
The Martand Sun Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Surya (the chief solar deity in Hinduism) and built during the 8th century CE. Now in ruins, the temple is located five miles from Anantnag in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The temple was destroyed on the orders of Sultan Sikandar Butshikan, as part of his efforts to forcibly convert Kashmiri people to Islam.
The Martand temple was built on top of a plateau from where you can view whole of the Kashmir Valley. The Archaeological Survey of India has declared the Martand Sun Temple as a site of national importance in Jammu and Kashmir.
In 2014 Martand Temple was selected as the background for the song Bismil, in the popular Bollywood movie Haider. The movie is modelled on Shakespeare's Hamlet in the backdrop of Kashmir conflict. In the movie the temple was shown as a place of evil. This partially led to the controversy surrounding the movie. Anupam Kher criticised director Vishal Bhardwaj for shooting the Devil’s Dance sequence in the temple, resulting in humiliation to Kashmiri Pandits.
Another view of the Martand sun temple - Kashmir 2010
The Martand Sun Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Surya (the chief solar deity in Hinduism) and built during the 8th century CE. Now in ruins, the temple is located five miles from Anantnag in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The temple was destroyed on the orders of Sultan Sikandar Butshikan, as part of his efforts to forcibly convert Kashmiri people to Islam.
The Martand temple was built on top of a plateau from where you can view whole of the Kashmir Valley. The Archaeological Survey of India has declared the Martand Sun Temple as a site of national importance in Jammu and Kashmir.
In 2014 Martand Temple was selected as the background for the song Bismil, in the popular Bollywood movie Haider. The movie is modelled on Shakespeare's Hamlet in the backdrop of Kashmir conflict. In the movie the temple was shown as a place of evil. This partially led to the controversy surrounding the movie. Anupam Kher criticised director Vishal Bhardwaj for shooting the Devil’s Dance sequence in the temple, resulting in humiliation to Kashmiri Pandits.