Temple Description

The Venugopala Swamy Temple, located in Hosa Kannambadi near the Krishna Raja Sagara, exemplifies the Hoysala architectural style in Karnataka, India. Constructed in the 12th century, it was built around the same period as the Chennakesava Temple at Somanathapura in the Mysore district.

Originally situated in the village of Kannambadi, the temple and its surroundings were slated for submersion due to the Krishna Raja Sagara dam project initiated by Sir M. Visvesvaraya in 1909. To address this, the king of Mysore at the time, Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV, established a new settlement called Hosa Kannambadi (New Kannambadi) for the displaced residents.

Despite these efforts, the Venugopala Swamy Temple, along with the Kenneshwara (Ishwara) temple and the Kalamma temple, were submerged once the dam’s first phase was completed in 1930. Before the submersion, the main idol of Venugopalaswamy, depicting Lord Krishna as a flute-playing cowherd, was relocated to a new temple in the resettled village.