Kachchaleswarar Temple, Hindu temple in George Town, Chennai, India

The Kachchaleswarar Temple is a Hindu temple in George Town, Chennai, with a five-tiered Shiva Lingam structure adorned with tortoise, serpent, lion throne, yugasanam, and lotus representations. The complex displays rich ornamental carving that translates religious symbols into stone form.

The temple was built in 1725 by Kalavai Chetty, a British East India Company interpreter, marking a turning point in the area's history. Its construction sparked the first major conflict between different caste communities in Madras.

The street outside was once called Katchala Pagoda Street, after the "Great Kachali Pagoda", the name the British gave the temple. A large retinue of dancing girls was attached to the temple in its early days; they had lived in a quarter next to it since about 1700. The temple belonged to the left-hand castes, and its processional approach was the subject of a caste dispute settled by government intervention.

The temple stands on Armenian Street in Parry's Corner (George Town), the area once called Black Town. The sources record no opening hours or ritual timetable, so check locally before visiting. The street was formerly Katchala Pagoda Street, named after the temple's old name, the Great Kachali Pagoda.

The main idol is a five-tiered Shiva Linga called the panchasanam, decorated with a tortoise, a serpent, a lion-throne, a lotus and a vimalam. A plaque inside records the first kumbhaabishekam in 1728, and a great consecration was held on 8 July 1962.