"Ninaivale silai..." was a lovely song from 'Andaman Kadhali', a late 1970s film. The song was very popular in those days and it also attracted a controversy. There was a good deal of outrage over the pronunciation of the word "திருக்கோவிலே" (Thirukkovile - holy temple) in the song. It was claimed that the singer K.J. Yesudas was unable to say it correctly and that he sung it as "தெருக்கோவிலே" (Therukkovile - street temple), which somehow denigrated the temple.
It was that song which came to my mind when I saw this arch, leading to a temple. Although I did not go inside, I am sure this would have been around in the 1970s. As you can make out, the temple does not seem to have any wall in front of it. You just walk off the street into the temple's foyer; and the main deities can be viewed - and prayed to - from the street itself, if you wish.
The arch says "அருள்மிகு திருவீதியம்மன் ஆலயம்". (Sacred Holy-street-amman Temple), using a synonym of 'தெரு' for street; so, when it has taken over the entire street, it is okay to call it a street temple, I guess!
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