“Though the great Cholas are no more yet their name is still remembered with great pride because of their highest achievements in the domain of art and architecture.” Comment.
Approach · directive: “comment”
What it asks · Test the claim that the imperial Cholas are remembered chiefly for art and architecture — support it with evidence and add their other enduring legacies.
The question has 2 parts — answer each
- Comment on the claim: show why Chola art and architecture — temples, sculpture, bronzes, painting — is their most remembered achievement
- Qualify the claim: the Cholas' other enduring legacies and a critical view of what the art rested on
Open with · From Vijayalaya's capture of Thanjavur in the ninth century to Rajendra I's Gangaikondacholapuram, the Cholas carried Dravidian art to its classical height.
Cover
- Temple architecture: Rajaraja I's Brihadisvara at Thanjavur, Rajendra I's Gangaikondacholisvaram, Airavatesvara at Darasuram — towering vimanas.
- Temple as institution: centre of economy, learning, water management and festivals; its inscriptions record land grants and administration.
- Bronzes: lost-wax Nataraja and other icons — a fusion of theology, anatomy and metallurgy.
- Painting and dance: murals in the Thanjavur temple; dance postures carved on walls; temples supported musicians and dancers.
- Literature: Kamban's Ramayana, Sekkizhar's Periyapuranam and compilation of the Tirumurai flourished under Chola patronage.
- Beyond art: village self-government (Uttaramerur inscriptions), naval expeditions to Srivijaya, irrigation tanks and merchant guilds.
- Critical view: art rested on agrarian surplus, conquest and brahmadeya grants that deepened social hierarchy.
Close with · The Cholas are remembered through their temples because those temples embodied their whole achievement — administration, economy, faith and art together.
Add value (verified)
- UNESCO inscribed the three Chola temples as the ‘Great Living Chola Temples’ World Heritage site. Great Living Chola Temples — UNESCO World Heritage Centre ↗“The site includes three great 11th- and 12th-century Temples: the Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur, the Brihadisvara Temple at Gangaikondacholisvaram and the Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram.”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2024, GS Paper I — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 304 words (UPSC limit 250) · Minimalist IAS
From Vijayalaya's capture of Thanjavur in the ninth century to Rajendra I's new capital at Gangaikondacholapuram, the imperial Cholas carried Dravidian art to its classical height — and that height is what the world still sees.
Why art and architecture dominate memory
- Temples of empire: Rajaraja I's Brihadisvara at Thanjavur (c. 1010 CE), with a vimana over 60 metres high; Rajendra I's Gangaikondacholisvaram; Rajaraja II's Airavatesvara at Darasuram — together UNESCO's 'Great Living Chola Temples'.
- Innovation: the vimana grew from the modest Pallava shrine into a towering pyramid; enclosure walls, gateways, Nandi mandapas and dvarapalas set the template of the South Indian temple.
- Bronzes: lost-wax icons, above all the Nataraja, fused theology, anatomy and metallurgy; they remain India's most recognised sculptures abroad.
- Painting, dance and letters: Chola murals in the Thanjavur temple's passages; dance karanas carved on its walls; Kamban's Ramayanam, Sekkizhar's Periyapuranam and the Tirumurai compilation flourished under Chola patronage.
The temple embodied more than art
- Economy: temples were landlords, bankers, employers and irrigation managers; inscriptions on their walls record grants, taxes and disputes.
- Self-government: the Uttaramerur inscriptions (Parantaka I, tenth century) lay down qualifications and lot-based selection (kudavolai) for village committees.
- Power and trade: Rajendra I's naval expedition against Srivijaya (1025 CE); merchant guilds such as the Ainnurruvar trading across the Bay of Bengal; tanks like the Cholagangam.
- Administration: land surveys, a graded revenue system and the nadu–valanadu structure — a template for later Tamil kingdoms.
A critical view
- The temples rested on agrarian surplus, war booty and brahmadeya grants that deepened caste hierarchy; the grandeur of Thanjavur was also the tax burden of its peasants.
The Cholas are remembered through their temples because those temples embodied their whole achievement — administration, economy, faith and art together — so the pride is deserved, even if its reason is broader than art alone.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.