Heartbreaking 'Before and After' Photos Show How Odisha’s Iconic Places Were Torn Up by Cyclone Fani

When cyclonic storm Fani struck Odisha, no one had the slightest idea that the ferocious winds would leave behind a catastrophic trail of destruction. The temple town of Puri, where the cyclone made landfall, was the worst hit, followed by the capital city of Bhubaneswar, which still continues to reel under power and water crisis even a week after the storm hit the state.

To put the scale of destruction in perspective, an Instagram account shared 'before and after' photos of popular places in Bhubaneswar and Puri that have been badly affected by Fani. The account is owned by Sarthak Pradhan, a columnist, blogger and feature writer based in Bhubaneswar.

The before and after images of Konark Sun Temple.

A fallen electric tower over Mahanadi river.

An avid traveller, Pradhan drives across Puri, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack quite frequently, and when he witnessed the devastation caused by cyclone Fani, he was moved to create collages of ‘before and after’ photos from his own collection to send a message to fellow netizens on social media.

The thatch of a structure was blown away entirely in the Cyclone.

A view of the beach side in Puri.

“It wrenched my heart to see the tragic scenes after cyclone Fani. I couldn't believe my eyes. Especially the sight of uprooted trees along the Puri Konark Marine drive road, which has a special place in the heart of travellers and nature lovers,” Pradhan said. “To bring out the same feeling among people, I posted a ‘before and after’ collage of Marine drive on Instagram and Facebook but I had not imagined it would get such an overwhelming response.”

The trees at the Janpath road were entirely washed out after the cyclone.

A view of the storm-ravaged Pahala Rosogulla Market.

This collage went viral in no time with multiple pages sharing the photo on their platforms. “I know it will hurt people, but it will also create a sense of determination among people to rebuild Odisha,” he said. “That is my motto. I have succeeded in creating a sense of determination without any write up or speech; rather only by juxtaposing two photos.”

The Bhubaneswar Airport was also damaged in the Cyclone.

Puri Shree Jagannath Temple, destroyed Kalpa Bata Tree and Maghnad wall.

Pradhan hopes that a few months from now, he'll be able to post pictures of these places after they have been restored to their former glory. He says his caption will be, "see..!! How we have risen again..!!"