Tmple of many colours

PUNE: An appalling riot of colours: This is what best describes Laxmishwar Mandir's present condition. A jarring and discordant palette of oil paint mercilessly obscures the elegance of the original building. Glazed tile cladding to an inner stone wall of the temple makes one wish that donations from devotees were put to more sensible use.
This Shiva temple was built a stone's throw away from Raste Wada in the early 1780s by Anandrao Bhikaji Raste, a scion of the Raste family that formed the second echelon in the then power hierarchy.He also constructed three big cisterns in front of the temple, supplied with water brought several miles from Mauje Kondhwa. It was one of the 16 prominent temples that dotted Rasta Peth by AD 1810-11. The Rastes were in charge of Rasta Peth till 1860, nearly eight decades after Anandrao founded it.
The two-and-a-half-foot north-facing Shivalinga is housed in a square, east-facing stone gabhara (sanctum sanctorum), abutting a rectangular portico with an open frontage, spanned over three arches. The gabhara is capped by a corbelled stone dome with a central lotus pendant. On the lintel of the gabhara door is a Ganesha relief and the threshold bears karmukha (a bow-shaped semi-elliptical projection). The sabhamandapa (anterior hall) rests on plain shaft pillars and has an almost flat domical ceiling. Evolving from a square base to a polygon towards the pinnacle, the Maratha style shikhara in plastered brickwork comprises tiers embellished with imagery and stucco figures.
Just outside the sabhamandapa is a life-size Nandi bull (Shiva's carrier), carved with fine detail and seated on a covered pedestal. In the portico are wall recesses with figurines of Shani, Ganapati, Chandika Devi and Dattatreya. The entire complex is about two feet below the road level and enclosed by stone walls. The plinth of the main shrine is about two-and-a-half feet high.
Towards the northeast of the temple stands a small stone engraved with the images of Brahma and Nagadevata. Ancillary temples of Dattatreya and Hanuman behind the main temple seem to be latter-day additions. It is believed, albeit without conclusive evidence, that a tunnel starting somewhere underneath these temples once led up to Raste Wada and was used by members of the Raste family.
Despite its architectural and historic significance, the temple appears undermined by vapid high-rise development around, which has reduced the access way to an alley. The unkempt sabhamandapa has a wooden framework at the upper level, also used to suspend light fixtures.
The pradakshina (circumambulatory) path is well paved, but inside the enclosure to the north is an unsightly dump. Surface water and sullage disposal are big challenges. The tenements inside the enclosure are occupied by the descendants of the Bhagwan family, several generations of which have officiated at the temple. Electrical installations blot the southern face of the gabhara.