Temples continued to be built in the Vijayanagar empire after Raksas Tangdi, and to be built with an inborn sense of artistry. When the empire petered out, Hindu devotion continued to express itself in striking forms. One of the most notable of these is the Sri Rama temple in Bhadrachalam, in Khammam district.

Among the most famous of those dedicated to the Prince of Ayodhya , this temple stands on the north bank of Godavari, at the vary spot, so tradition holds, where he spent a part of his retreat along with Sita. At Parnasala, about 32 km away, they lived in a hut. It was where the Bhadrachalam temple stands that Sri Rama crossed the Godavari on his way to Sri Lanka to rescue Sita, whom Ravana had abducted. Traditions of his presence at sites like Humpi in Karnataka, (see below) and Rameswaram  (in Tamil Nadu, see below) are strong .

The temple was built in the seventeenth century by Gopanna, the tahsildar of Bhadrachalam ( 1654-87). He used six lakhs of rupees from the government treasury. When the matter was reported to the king of Golconda, Abdul Hassan, he ordered him to be arrested and brought to the capital. He was imprisoned in a dungeon which is still shown to visitors.