chennai whenever he takes a long holiday or even a couple of days off from work he will pick up his camera and leave for an ancient temple he may spend at least three days focussing on many angles and minute details of the structure arvind venkatraman has so far photographed and documented at least 200 chola temples but this software professional dreams big he wants to cover all cholaperiod temples numbering around 500 in tamil nadu and its neighbouring states being a software professional how arvind got attracted to temples is a different story i was interested in art and i liked temples a lot for their artistic treasure once i started covering temples six years ago i slowly realised their importance its not a hobby its something beyond that he saidto document and photograph a temple arvind says one needs to spend at least three days on the premises if the structure is big having minute details it will take more than three days i have been covering temples for six years i dont pack my camera bag on weekends because it is not sufficient if i get a long weekend i dont waste it said arvind who works with a software company in chennai each temple has its own stylistic beauty but if you ask arvind which temple was the best that he photographed he would say each temple is important for me but some temples will surprise you without even having a single crack on their structure the chola temple in pullamangai near thanjavur is an example it still looks fresh as if its constructed a couple of years ago he said however some temples are a bit difficult to document there will be minute details like ancient inscriptions or ruined paintings scattered in the dark corners of the temple it needs a lot of patience to trace those things it takes more than a week to cover such temples said arvind even though arvind tried to photograph most of the temples that he wished there are some he couldnt do due to lack of cooperation from the authorities getting permission is difficult these days i sometimes face problems the authorities will not grant permission in some cases i couldnt cover the ancient shiva temple in thirukazhukundram due to this there are many other temples that i could not cover for the same reason said arvind who wants to publish a book once he captures all chola temples