Modhera in Gujarat, India, has been hailed as the country’s first village with round-the-clock solar power, delivering sustainable energy to more than 1,300 homes and government buildings.
In celebration of this momentous step forward for the region’s sustainability efforts, a new 3D projection show – run entirely by solar power – has been created at the village’s holy epicentre: the Sun Temple.
Dedicated to the Hindu solar deity, Surya, the Sun Temple of Modhera has recently come to the attention of many people in the region, by forming the backdrop to a beautiful 20-minute projection show, which tells the story of the village’s rich history dating back to 1617.
“The brief we received from the client, Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited, was to produce a multimedia 3D projection mapping show about the past, present and future of Modhera’s Sun Temple,” says Pratik Wadhwa, CEO of Modern Stage Services (Projects). “The structure of the temple is completely unique and working on a heritage site comes with many of its own challenges, so we needed to ensure the best kit was chosen for the project.”
To breathe new light into this unique building, five Christie D20WU-HS projectors were installed with weatherproof, outdoor architectural lights from HARMAN Pro, to illuminate the temple’s facade and create a mirror effect in the body of water in front of the monument.
All content was delivered using AV Stumpfl’s PIXERA media server software, a powerful 64-bit system capable of 8K real-time rendering, with intuitive 2D and 3D projection mapping workflows.
Based on the core theme of usability, the interface allows for a fast and intuitive learning process, whether working in 2D or 3D.
Due to its having integrated VIOSO auto-calibration technology, PIXERA offers users a variety of calibration modes depending on the intended surface: flat or curved screens, 3D models and irregular surfaces such as rocks, or in this instance, an entire building facade.
Wadhwa opted for PIXERA in this unique installation, stating that the software’s capabilities are “world class” in comparison to anything else on the market: “The pre-visualisation feature helps us deliver our ideas to the clients,” he says. “With this tool, clients are able to fully envisage the end result before we start working on-site which is an invaluable tool for us.”
Working on the centuries-old heritage monument, the team at Modern Stage Services overcame many challenges and restrictions: “The Sun Temple was built hundreds of years ago so of course there were no AutoCAD drawings to work with,” continues Wadhwa. “That’s why we needed the very best software for compositing, mapping, and media processing to help us realise the client’s brief. We are so pleased with how the PIXERA software handled the intricacies of this project in such a user-friendly way.”
To mark such a prestigious occasion, India’s prime minster inaugurated the Sun Temple’s debut show in October which now runs daily from 6–10pm. “The prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, tweeted about the show on his personal account,” concludes Wadhwa. “That was truly remarkable and the biggest compliment for our team and everybody else involved in the project.”
