Nandalike (Karkala): Most of the temples across the state resort to outdoor advertising or putting up advertisements on newspaper and television to inform devotees that the annual festival of the temple is just around the corner.
However, every year, Nandalike Sri Mahalingeshwara Temple stands out with its creative advertisements that makes everyone stop and spare a minute.

The temple annual festival is slated to be held on Wednesday, March 23 and as an invitation to the same, the temple, this year resorted to placing beautifully packed huge gunny bag potlis in Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Kasargod, Shivamogga and Malnad areas. A total of 3,000 such gunny bags have been filled with wood saw and placed on National Highway stretch and on routes leading to the temple in a way as to catch attention of the people.The temple has spent a sum of Rs 150 to Rs 200 per bag which has been printed with the information about the temple fair.

The man behind such unique ad concept is Nandalike Chavadi Mane Suhas Hegde, an Engineering graduate and son of Temple Managing Trust S Sundar Ram Hegde.

The temple started this unique technique of inviting people couple of years ago. Last year, plastic milestone were place all over the region, which has evoked curiosity among the people.

The year before, aesthetically made paper cut outs of embellished umbrellas were put up giving out information about the temple fair.

This year, Hegde has certainly caught the pulse of the rural people by putting up invitation on gunny bags, a symbol our agrarian households, where paddy and rice are stacked in similar gunny bags.

Further paper cut outs of the same gunny bags were pasted on buses and other public transport means.

All in all, Nandalike temple has never failed to kindle curiosity of the onlookers. While people were seen touching the milestones last year to know what material went into making them, this year people ended up opening the gunny bags to see what lay inside the bags!