Your sightseeing in Mamallapuram starts with a short meeting with your local guide who is well-informed and well versed with the lanes of the city. Thus begins your day long trip to Mamallapuram which is known for its famous stone carvings and colossal temples. The edifices in Mahabalipuram, mostly carved straight out of granite, are among the oldest existing examples of Dravidian (South Indian) architecture and thus feature in the bucket list of various tourists especially the ones interested in ancient architecture. One of the attractions in the itinerary is the Arjuna’s Penance, a giant structure filled with carvings illustrating instances from the great epic, the Mahabharata. Arjuna relief is in the centre of Mahabalipuram, facing the sea at a short distance from the shores of the Coramandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal.