At the age of 23, he was married and again he started to work on the projects from home in AP. One fine day, the KENDRIYA SANSKRIT VIDYA PEETAM, Tirupathi that had a research wing for the Sculpture Sastra [Sirpa Sasthram] had invited Sthapathi Subbiah Aachari through the Central Government to assist the Researchers. During this time, the lucky fortune struck again on him. He was invited by the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam [TTD] for some assistance / advice on their temple sculptures. He was providential to get the Darshan of the Lord Venkatachalapathy, which today will be a dream come true miracle for anybody. He was given the due respect, darshan and the Lord’s Prasadam.
His Darshan of the Lord has been so favoring to him that immediately he was called for another project in Dwaraka Tirumala (also called ‘Chinna Tirupathi’) in the 70s to design and sculpt the Moola Sthaanam Vimaanam and the Ammavaaru Vimaanam. Sthapathi Sri Subbiah Aachari considers this as the most important turning point in his life and career.
From here, his contribution to the impeccable service to God-kind grew abundantly and he started becoming very renowned. One can envisage the path of his career growth to serve the Gods and to continue the art of their 1000 year old generation which lives until today.
He further went to Bheemavaram, Juvaalapaalam to construct the first Geetha Mandiram of his career. Subsequently he was also offered to construct the Sri Bheemeswara Swamy Temple and Sri Prabharambal Temple in the same place. After serving for a brief period in all the regions of Andhra, he was again called back for an assignment in his hometown in Tamilnadu. This time, it was the most prestigious Kanchi Sri Kamakoti Temple’s South Raja Gopuram. This was a very fascinating moment in his life and he went on to complete the Gopuram with full vigor and vivacity, making full use of his creativity and the team’s skilled labor.
In 1972, the now renowned Mel Maruvathur Adi Parasakthi temple’s trust had to seek his advice and knowledge to construct the temple’s Sakthi Peetam in several locations of Tamilnadu. These included Thillai Nagar {Tiruchi}, Kailasapura, Chidambaram, Vaniyampadi, Panruti, Vellore, Senkottai, Kalavai etc.,
Here the team had built 116 pillars with all round Mandap In the mean time there were also many other projects like the Sri Sakthivel Murugan Temple in a village called Keezh Veeranam in between Kaveripakkam and Sholingar., 5-storeyed Raja Gopuram. A team of around 150 sculptors worked on this milestone project for around a decade. This was a complete stone work only.
Luck favored this Godly humble human being yet again. This time around in the early 80s, the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam’s [TTD] renovation department called for him. They wanted him to take over the complete ORNAMENTAL DECORATION and ELEVATION work of the Sri Vaikunda Dwaram [the Q Complex].
Sthapathi Sri Subbiah Aachari’s hands continued to work for the Lord in Alipiri – down the Tirumala hills to construct the foot path steps for the walking pilgrims from the entrance till the Kali Gopuram – a height of around 1300 feet with stone steps. Further from Kali Gopuram there is a Lord Hanuman Temple which is called the 7th MILE. From here to the Sri Lakshmi Narasimhar Temple – a stretch of 3 km, complete dressed cut stone foot path was laid by his team.
On the way, the Mogalmettu Gopuram and the Ramanujar Temple was also constructed by him.
Again, right up the hill, the Bedi Hanuman Temples’ Aasthana Mandap’s ornamental works on all the 4 sides were designed, conceived and executed by him.
The construction, design of Ornamental works of the Mandapam in the main entrance [MAHA DWAARAM] in the front and the Srivari temple, the backside of the Srivari Temple, the Museum building also add pride and prestige to his kitty. Back in the hometown in the late 90s, he was asked to construct the front and right sides compound walls of the famous RAJIV GANDHI MEMORIAL with stones. This was later inaugurated by the Congress Chair Person Mrs Sonia Gandhi and his works were well appreciated by her. All through these years, he continued to assist his father and grandfather as they made moulds and sculptures. His natural instinct and skill was honed finer and finer during this time. Not surprisingly, his heart lay far from the formal education he underwent.
Success in the form of recognition of his work came naturally. However, as with any good artist, he faced commercial difficulties. The dearth for patronization of the art and difficulty in getting finely skilled labour came in the way of the studio’s growth.
His works communicate his passion for the art-form. This was when his son Sthapathi Swaminathan joined him. Later the father-son duo is offered various other projects overseas. The most prestigious being the Sri Mahamariamman Temple in Bukit Rotang, 80 km from Kuala Lampur in Malaysia. This is the oldest functioning Hindu Temple in Malaysia. The services of Sirpa Aagama Kalaamani, Sri Subbiah Stabathi from Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peedam was retained and plans for the new Temple are drawn up and submitted to the authorities for approval.
The Construction of the Temple and its Architecture of the Vellore Golden Temple was one of Sthapathi Sri Subbiah Aachari’s biggest projects. This temple is spread over the area of 55000 sq ft and furnished with gold sculptures and complex carving. On the 24th August 2007, the construction of the temple got completed.
Sri Balaji Venkateshwara Swamy Mandir, Ketkawle in Narayanpur – Pune was one of the most prestigious projects. Deity Sri Balaji and a separate sannidhi for the Thayar are specialties of this temple. The structure is also a bit similar to the original Tirumala Devasthanam and all the religious activities of the temple are followed in a similar way. There are also sannadhis to Venugopala swamy, Chakratalwar and Andal. There is a separate sannadhi to Kubera the god of wealth outside the main temple.
Other projects subsequently were the Ugra Prathiyankara Devi Temple in Semmedu village near Tiruvannamalai, Yogiram Temple.
