Jatayu Earth’s Center – The Largest Bird Sculpture in the World

I have already seen some photos of this place before my trip. So I was even more curious about what the biggest bird statue would be like in reality. This work of art is located at Jatayu Earth’s Center, which is actually both a tourist and pilgrimage site. You can find it in southern India, in Chadayamangalam, 50 km from Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum), the capital of Kerala. It is only 37 km away from the more famous tourist destination of Kollam.

Jatayu Center was opened in December 2017 and is still being completed. You can climb the stairs to the monumental statue.

However, it should be taken into account that there are 826 steps on the approx—1 km long route. The new, comfortable steps are in the upper part.

We decided on a comfortable cable car ride. A curious monkey family watched us as we boarded the cabins. Jatayu Center is located in a nature park, so we were not allowed to take any plastic with us and we were also warned not to leave any garbage here.

And then, the giant eagle statue began to be revealed. But it was not until we got off the cable car that we realized its true dimensions. The statue is 75 feet (approx. 23 m) high, 200 feet (61 m) long and 150 feet (45 m) wide.

To understand who this gigantic work depicts, we had to familiarize ourselves with the Indian epic Ramayana. Jatayu takes the form of a bird there – an eagle or a vulture. He and his brother Sampati often competed in their youth to see who would fly higher. Once, Jatayu flew too close to the sun, his brother protected him from being burned with his wings. Instead, his own wings were burnt, so Sampati had to stay on the ground from then on. Jatayu then accompanied and protected Lord Sri Rama, his wife Sita and Rama’s brother Lakshman.

However, one day Ravana kidnaps Sita and wants to take her to his kingdom in Lanka. Sita screams for help. Despite his old age, Jatayu challenges Ravana to a duel in the air. He attacks the ten-headed demon with both his beak and claws. However, when he cuts off his hands, new ones immediately grow back. Ravana shoots arrows at him. Finally, he cuts his wing with the sword and mortally wounds him in the neck and side.

The bird falls, flapping one wing until it lands on a huge rock. According to legend, it happened in these places. Therefore, the statue also shows the bird lying on its back, in mortal agony, with its beak open.

Rama and Lakshman found him in this bad condition. With the last of his strength, Jataya reveals to Rama in which direction Ravana has abducted Sita and predicts that he will get her back. Rama and Lakshman then pay their last respects to Jatayu by performing the funeral rites.

Indians come to the statue as a place of worship and take selfies, but are not allowed to sit on the statue. The statue is the work of sculptor and film director Rajiv Anchal, who won a competition announced by the Kerala government. It took him ten years (2008-2018) to make the sculpture. Just imagine that it took up to 1.5 years to build a mechanical winch capable of carrying a load of 800 kg. The statue stands at an altitude of 300 m.

When you come here, you can stop at least for a while to quietly contemplate the story of the brave Jatayu or look at the beautiful green landscape. Only here and there, some roofs of houses peek out from the thick growth.

Even the butterflies seem to fly a little more majestically here and, unlike the visitors, they allow themselves to sit on the concrete from which the statue is made.

You can also observe the colorful cable car cabins that bring more visitors.

We had the privilege of peering into the concrete bowels of this monumental sculptural work.

At the time of my visit, the interior of the statue was empty, but there are plans to set up an audiovisual museum here. At the lower station and at the top, there are stands with refreshments and drinking water, as well as sanitary facilities. Jatayu Center is still being completed, in the future, it should become a tourist destination for families with children. It is planned to build an amusement park, a campsite and a wellness center. Helicopter sightseeing flights, trekking, climbing wall, paintball, ziplining, archery and other adventure activities are already offered here.

Jatayu Earth’s Center is open every day from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Payment in cash only.

More information: Jatayu Earth´s Center

More information about Kerala: Kerala Tourism

Text: © Copyright Ingrid, Travelpotpourri
Fotos: © Copyright Ingrid, Travelpotpourri