Bangalore - Bull temple and Bugle Rock

Located in Basavanagudi area of Bangalore, The Bull Temple (known in Kannada as 'Dodda Basavana Gudi'), is one of the oldest temples in Bangalore built by 16th century ruler and founder of Bangalore - Kempe Gowda I. Nandi idol in this temple is over 15ft tall and carved from a massive monolithic granite rock.

Bugle rock park is located next to temple and spans over 16 acres of land. Park has a number of walkways, an amphitheater, options for adults to do exercise and kids to play. What makes this park special is geology. The rock formations with in this park is estimated to be more than 3000mn years old. You may still be wondering why it was called bugle rock.  Well, during the reign of Kempe Gowda, watchmen were placed here. Given the height of this place, it gives a better view of the surrounding areas. Watchmen would blow a bugle to signal the closing of city gates at dusk and also to inform people in case of any dangers. 

In those days Bangalore city had four main gates, located at, 

1. Yalahanka (Northern Gate)

2. Halasuru/Ulsoor (Eastern Gate)

3. Kengeri (Western Gate)

4. Kanakpura (Southern Gate)

In addition to the gates there were also four watch towers located at,

1. Lalbagh rock

2. kempambudhi Tank

3. Mekri circle

4. Ulsoor lake

Bull Temple and Bugle Rock had been on my bucket list for a while, but I never quite made it there. This time, on a Saturday afternoon, we finally decided to go. Since the roads tend to get congested around that time, we took the scooter—it’s easier to navigate traffic and needs less space. So, it was me, Divya, and Niha. I can’t exactly say 'three men in a boat', but it felt something like that.

It was also Niha’s first proper ride. Before this, we had only taken her around 200 meters on scooter. She sat sandwiched between us, and our little trip began. First stop—Brahmin’s Coffee Bar in Basavanagudi. This restaurant is over 60 years old and very popular. They kept the menu simple  - coffee, idli, vada, kesari bath, and khara bath. We skipped idli (a regular breakfast item at home and, in Divya’s words, her idly is the softest ever) and got the vada, kesari bath, and khara bath. Divya does put effort into making soft idlis—something I tease her about, saying she perfected the recipe after years of experimenting on me.

The vada and kesari bath were good. The khara bath tasted very different from what I’ve usually had, but it was still tasty. Divya didn’t try it because of the color combination! Since Niha hasn’t yet reached the stage of saying a firm yes or no, I managed to push a couple of bits of Khara bath to here mouth as well!!!

From there, Bull Temple wasn’t far. By the time we left, the sky had already turned to darker shade of grey. Still, we went ahead and reached the temple. A lot of bikes were parked in the front, but the temple itself wasn’t too crowded. It’s not just the Bull Temple—there are two to four other small temples around the same area.

Chappal stand charges were 5 rupees/pair, and they accept UPI as well. I just wish public toilets worked the same way. Getting exact 5 rupee coin or 10 rupee note is difficult.

One of the entrances to Bugle Rock Park is quite close to the Bull Temple. It was nearly 8 PM—closing time—so we had very little time left. We took a slow walk inside, sat for a bit at the amphitheater, walked to the other gate, and circled back. It’s a lovely place to spend some time. Need to come back here again, but in day time. 

Sajeev