Menaka Suresh turns to mural painting

Thiruvananthapuram: Some graceful mural paintings brushed by Menaka Suresh will soon welcome devotees at Kudavoor Mahadeva Temple near Kerala capital Thiruvananthapuram.

The actress, who starred in hundreds of films in Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu in 1980s, is busy painting the walls of the village temple with stories connected with Lord Shiva.

She said she has been getting trained in mural painting for the last four years and she is painting the walls of Kudavoor temple along with her "guru" Prince Thonnakkal, a noted painting artist.

Seventeen students of Prince including Menaka recently staged an exhibition titled "Mural Ramayana" in which important episodes of the epic had been depicted in the form of mural paintings.

Various mythical episodes taken from Markkandeya Purana and Shiva Purana would be depicted in the form of murals at Kudavoor temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, she said.

Materials like lime, juicy extracts from leaves, "ennakkari" and "vettukallu" were being used to paint at temple walls, she said.

Noted film director Shaji Kailas would dedicate the painting for devotees on December 19, she added.

Many famous temples in Kerala including Padmanabha Swami Temple, Guruvayoor Temple and Vadakkumnadha Temple have the decoration of murals on walls.