Udupi

Udupi a land of ethereal beauty, sandwiched between the verdant mountains of the western ghats on the east and the vast, tranquil Arabian Sea on the west. This new district, carved out of the erstwhile Dakshina Kannada, which was more aptly called "Parashurama Srishti", encapsulates the vast cultural heritage. Udupi is well known for its religious fervour and vividity of diverse cultural heritage. Udupi, known elsewhere as a Temple City is the headquarters of the district, known world over to the millions of connoisseurs of food as the birth place of Udupi Hotels. It never ceases to enchant visitors from length and breadth of the country andtheworld over. It is best known as the seat of Madhwa renaissance, founded by the sage Madhwacharya, outcome of which are Ashtamathas, located in the famous Car Street, surrounding the Sri Krishna Temple.

Udupi, an important Teerthasthal (pilgrimage place) with its historical Krishna Temple is the cultural center of Karnataka. The district, carved out of Dakshina Kannada district two years ago, has its own identity in the fieldof art and culture.Great littérateurs like Late Dr. K Shivarama Karanth, Dr U R Ananthamurthy and Girish Karnad, the Jnanapeeth award winners hail from this place. Other littérateurs and critics like Late Pa Vem Acharya, N Vyasaraya Ballal, also have their lineage to this land. Well known artistes like Late K K Hebbar, Late B P Bairi dedicated their lives for the promotion and spread of art Yakshagana,Taalamaddale, Gombeyaata, Bhoota worship, Naaga worship, Koti Chennaya Nema, Garaodis, temples, cock-fight are the reminiscence of the rich past and glory of this magical land.

Udupi district devided into 3 talukas, they are: Udupi,Karkala,Kundapura

Udupi :

Udupi  is a town in the south-west Indian State of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Udupi District. Udupi is notable for the Krishna Temple, and lends its name to the popular Udupi cuisine. Udupi, also known as Rajata Peetha and Shivalli (Shivabelli), a centre of pilgrimage, is situated about 58 km north of Mangalore and about 422 km north-west of Bangalore.

Karkala:

The Alupas were the first to rule Karkala. Their rule was followed by the Santaras, who were the feudatories of Alupas for many years. Karkala, or ancient Pandya Nagari, attained political and cultural importance from the time of the Kalasa-Karkala kingdom that was established by Bhairarasa Odeyas between 13th and 16th centuries. The Bhairarasas appear to be the descendants of the Santara chiefs, who ruled the western ghats region around the 11th century AD.The royal family of Karkala rose to prominence during the time of the Hoysalas. During the Vijayanagara period, they expanded their kingdom to cover Sringeri, Koppa, Balehonnur, and Mudigere in Chikamagalur and most of the Karkala taluk.The king Veera Bhairava constructed basadis at Karkala and endowed land and money on numerous temples and basadis.

Ramanatha and Veerapandya were his two sons. Ramanatha predeceased his father, and in his memory, a lake called Ramasamudra was created, which still survives. Later, King Veera Pandya installed a large statue of Bahubali on the rocky hill of Karkala. The date of the installation has been ascertained as February 13, 1432. Veera Pandya also installed the Brahmadeva Pillar in front of the statue in 1436. His successor, Abinava Pandya, installed an intricate 54-foot-high (16 m) carving of manastambha in front of the Neminatha Basadi in Hiriyangadi in 1457 AD. Later, Pandya VI built the Kere Basadi in the middle of a lake called Anekere in 1545 AD.

Kundapura:

The name Kundapura can be traced to the Kundeshvara temple built by Kundavarma in the vicinity of the Panchagangavalli river The name of the town may be derived from Kundavarma who ruled the area. Kunda means 'pillar' in Kannada, which refers to the traditional method of constructing houses. Pura means town. Kundapura is surrounded by water from three sides. To the north lies the Panchagangavali river. To the east lies the Kalaghar river.

To the west lie the Kodi back waters and the Arabian Sea, leaving the south side as the main connecting land mass. All connecting roads to Kundapura enter the city from southern direction. North side of the town is vast backwaters of Panchagangavali river and a bridge has been constructed across it .