Kalleshwara Temple, Hire Hadagali in Bellary district

The Kalleshwara temple is located in the town of Hire Hadagali in Bellary district.

The temple was constructed by Demarasa, prime minister  to  Kalyani Chalukya Empire King Somesvara I, The basic material used for the original construction is soapstone

vimana of Kalleshvara temple at Hire Hadagali

According to old Kannada inscription (1057 A.D) at the temple calls it Bhimesvara-Demesvara. The inscription gives information about the genealogy of the Chalukya dynasty and refers to Vikramaditya VI as a kumara(prince). Another old Kannada inscription (1108) from the rule of Vikramaditya VI gives further details about the consecration of the temple by Udayaditya under the orders of Demarasa. A third poetic Kannada inscription (1212A.D) on the premises belongs to the rule of Hoysala King Veera Ballala II.

The temple is two shrined (dvikuta),each with a sanctum (garbhagriha) and a vestibule (antarala) that connects to a common four pillared navaranga.and the large mukhamantapa existed, connecting the closed hall to the outside of the temple, form the southern direction. Outside the main temple complex, a nandimantapa containing a sculpture of Nandi has been converted into a shrine.

Nandimantapa  in Kalleshvara temple at Hire Hadagali

The decorativeness of the outer walls of the main shrine and its closed hall exemplify Chalukyan art. Projections and recesses with niches have been created and used skillfully to accommodate pilasters whose niches contains deities in relief, depicting the Indra, Shiva, his consort Parvati, Lakshmi and others.The doorway to the vestibule has artistic carvings of dvarapalas, the goddess of love Rati, and god of love Manmatha. The door lintel(lalata) has an image of Gajalakshmi.The eaves over the door has fine images of  Brahma, Keshava and Shiva.According to Sinha, the exuberance of sculptural articulation seen here is actually a southern Karnataka Hoysala influence on Chalukyan architecture