Vaikom: The lens of VK Saravanan has been witness to the passage of time and the growth of a sacred tree. For 21 years now, Saravanan has been capturing the transformation of a peepal tree that stands near the eastern entry complex of the Vaikom Mahadeva Temple.

This visual chronicle began in 2004, three years after the sapling was planted. The peepal tree was planted in October 2001 to replace a massive, aged tree that had stood at the same spot near the temple’s Kalamandapam until it was uprooted due to old age. Saravanan happened to notice the newly planted sapling during a vacation trip home from Dubai, where he was working at the time.

Moved by the absence of the old tree and the quiet presence of the new one, Saravanan took a photo. Then he took another the next year and again the year after that. Starting as a mere gesture, it gradually turned into a two-decade-long practice. Every time he returned home for his May–June vacation, he would visit the spot and click a picture of the growing tree.

Today, Saravanan works as an Assistant Professor in the Design Department of Sacred Heart College, Thevara. His journey of documenting the tree’s growth began with film cameras and has since transitioned to digital photography.

The once tiny sapling has now matured into a towering peepal tree. Through every stage of its growth, Saravanan’s camera has been there, bearing witness.