TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY - XXV

SHARADA AMMAL AND SOME 'GOOD OLD MEMORIES'

Once I asked Sharada whether she had visited the Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple in her younger days, before the legendary ‘Temple Entry Proclamation’; the days when the land and people were divided in the name of the ‘caste’. “Yes, of course” - was her prompt reply. She continued; “During those days I had many friends from nearby Nair families, I went to the temple with them and no one noticed me or my caste. Even if they found out, they couldn’t kill me, can they?”

Sharada Ammal, one of the oldest female members of the Manacaud crafts guild was born in Manacaud (c.1925). Sharada was the youngest daughter of Neelakandan Achari of Putten Veedu and Narayani Ammal, a member of Kunnathu Veedu, Attingal. Sharada in her younger days had witnessed the days of glory of the ivory craftsmen and artists of Pillavilakam, Pinarammoodu and the related families in Thiruvananthapuram. The children in the family adore her, and she is always seen happy with them, narrating stories and singing songs. Her frail figure and gentleness have now betrayed her inner self. She had changed from a determined soul that she once was in her younger days, to the gentle frame of a loving grandmother.

Though she was born as a member of the Manacaud guild, Sharada’s parents had maintained a strong relationship with the Kunnathu family, the taproot of the guilds of ivory craftsmen. One of Sharada’s earliest memories is that of a boat journey she took with her immediate family members to Attingal. The little girl was initially reluctant to go near the water but after some time she stretched her hand felt the cool waves of the river. Narayani, her mother soon lifted her up and seated her away from water scolding whether she wanted to fall into the ice-cold river. She attended the girls’ school at Thekkae Theruvu, inside the fort complex. Sharada says; “The classes would come to a halt when we heard a whistle, it was the time for the Kings ‘ezhunnalathu’ in his car. All the students would start singing Vanjeesha Mangalam, in praise of our land, its protector Sree Padmanabha Swamy and his humble servant”, she continues, “Occasionally he (Chithira Thirunal Bala Rama Varma) would be accompanied by his sister Karthika Thirunal. The Maharaja, on hearing the song would raise his head and smile at the students”. Sharada was in her teens when she started learning classical music with her cousins and nephews. ‘Karamana Kuttan Bagavathar’, a famed vocalist well versed in both Carnatic and Hindustani music came to Pillavilakam to train them. Her elder brother Kolappan Achari, an accomplished harmonium player and an artist was the first one in the family to be lured by the tinsel world. Kolappan who went to Āryashala to make backdrop paintings for Golden Theatre Company left home with them. Neelakandan Achari, his father spend years travelling all over India, searching in vain for his lost son. According to Sharada it was not her brother’s fault, it was destiny that made him do that. Karicha Keshavan, the family astrologer had predicted that when Kolappan would turn twenty-one, the house would become a ‘maranaveedu’. Kolappan left his house and family when he was twenty-one years old, leaving a wound in the hearts of his parents and siblings and thus proving right the prediction. After this incident, Sharada’s interests in acting and singing were not so welcome in the family. Her brother Thanuvan Achari was the one who opposed most.

One fine day when Sharada was busily engaged in her daily chores, humming a song and helping her mother in the kitchen, her nephews came with a newspaper safely tucked inside a bag. After ensuring that Thanuvan Achari was not there at home did the boys dare to take out the newspaper. The newspaper had an advertisement saying that Merry Land Studio, owned by Subramanyam was searching for new talents, beautiful women who were well versed in acting and singing, for acting in their two upcoming projects - ‘Raja Harishchandra’ and ‘Nalla Thanka’. Finally yielding to the requests of her nephews, Sharada wrote to the studio. Days went by and everyone including Sharada and her nephews forgot the incident, until a fateful day. To quote Sharada’s own words, “I still remember that day, that evening I went to the Shangumukam temple with our neighbour’s family. After visiting the temple we went to the beach and saw aeroplanes landing at the nearby airport. It was such a lovely evening. However, when I reached home, I could sense some problem from the facial expression of my mother, she seemed tense and nervous. My brother was there but he did not speak a word to me”. It so happened that when Sharada went out, a letter addressed to her was delivered at Putten Veedu. Thanuvan Achari, her elder brother was surprised to see the large envelope. In those days it was not usual for a young unmarried woman to get a letter addressed to her. Those who got letters were always looked upon with suspicion. Curious, he opened the envelope; inside there was a large certificate saying that Sharada has been selected for the screening test. She was asked to appear before the director of the film on a prescribed date. Sharada’s father who saw the anger on Thanuvan’s face had tried to lighten the mood by saying that Sharada was lucky to get such an opportunity. Sharada says, “Appan was also not willing to send me to the film field, though in the family we nurtured the tradition of song and dance, it never occurred to the elders that a girl from the family would choose to make her life out of it”. Thanuvan after reading the certificate, without any word tore it into two pieces and threw in the dustbin. Sharada later learned about this from her mother. Her nephews got the certificate from among the trash and pasted the pieces together; however, that day Sharada made up her mind, not to act.

Years passed by, Thanuvan Achari and Neelakandan Achari passed away. Sharada soon found herself living with her elder sister’s family. It was during this time when the idea dawned upon her that she could pursue her desire to act without her family’s consent. The support of her sister and her husband imparted confidence. Sharada was selected for the leading role for a play written by Venpalakkara Vishwambaran. The play was named ‘Stithisamathwam’. Sharada played the role of the heroine ‘Sumati’. Subbarao, a resident of the Agraharam complex inside the Fort who was an employee in All India Radio was the hero. Sharada with her good looks and sweet voice and natural acting skills became a star. Her second play, named ‘Rakthasakshi’ was staged in V.J.T. Hall, in which she donned the role of the heroine ‘Sulochana’. According to Sharada, it was the thick layer of makeup and the different voice tone she used while in the stage had probably saved her from being spotted by her relatives who were living in the same town. However, once when she returned from Chirayinkil after a play Sharada was tensed to see posters pasted on the fort wall bearing her pseudonym ‘Manacaud Sharadambal’, however, this time too she was not caught.

Sharada still remembers her days of acting when they had rehearsals in an old house in the Statue area. Everyday Sharada had to check with the authorities about who is coming as musicians for the rehearsals. Kanada Subbayya Bagavathar and Kuttan Bhagavathar, her paternal uncles were well-known musicians of the day and were sometimes invited to hear the songs or to compose songs. Sharada had to plan her schedules in such a way that her relatives who visited the house would not spot her there. “Those were adventurous days, many times I hid in the green room when my uncle was there”, says Sharada with a grin. In those days she sometimes had to stay with her fellow artists in the house. There were two young lads who attended to their needs. Abdul Khadar and his brother Abdul Wahab have been always there with them. They brought food for the female artists, whom they always addressed as sahodarimar (sisters). Soon the young men with their charm and good conduct became everyone’s favorite. “It was in one of our visits to Chirayinkil that we visited Abdul Khader’s house”, remembers Sharada. After some years Sharada was married to Janardhanan Achari, her muracherukkan, the marriage didn't last long, as Janardhanan went to Madras never to return. Sharada was alone once again. She had decided not to act again. During later years she spend days staying with close relatives. Wherever Sharada stayed, the children adored her. Though childless, she brought up children from two generations who lovingly address her as Avva. Once while staying at a relative’s house, Sharada heard a man’s voice from the television, the voice had evoked her memory, was it a long-forgotten voice that she was hearing? Sharada raced to the room where the television was kept. In the television screen, she saw a handsome young man; it didn’t take long for her sharp mind to recognize him as the ‘attendant’ boy Abdul Khadar; who was now famous as ‘Prem Nazir’! 

More information on Prem Nazir, 'The Evergreen Hero' of Malayalam cinema: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prem_Nazir

TALES FROM THE CAPITAL CITY - XX

SWARUPATHU VEEDU

Swarupathu Veedu*, now known as ‘Kaniyan Vilakam’ is an old aristocratic Nair tharavad situated in Thiruvananthapuram. The ancestral house of this family is located near the famed Mukkolakkal Devi temple in Sreevaraham, near Muttathara; to the south of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple.

There are no authentic records on the origin of the family, and going by the local lore and family traditions one can come to the conclusion that the family and its members were associated with the ancient Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple from times immemorial. There are many references to the family and the services rendered by them in the temple records, the Mathilakam Churuna, chronicling the history of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. Princess Lekshmi Bai of Travancore royal family in her book ‘Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple’ has expressed her gratitude to numerous old aristocratic families, located in the capital city that had rendered valuable service in managing the day to day activities of the temple; Swarupathu Veedu is one among them.

The poomukham of the house - Photograph taken by the author.

The family was in existence from very old days and the ancestors of the family may have been associated with the Ettarayogakar, the potty families who controlled the temple affairs. Travancore, before the period of Anizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma (b.1706-d.1758), was under the control of feudal lords, the Ettuveetil Pillamar, Nair chieftains who were the feudatories of the Potty families. However, later they gained prominence in the society and allied themselves with the Ettarayogam and thus became the uncrowned kings of Thiruvananthapuram. Some prominent Nair families assisted the Yogakkar in running the temple such as Mathilakam Pillamar. According to the present family members, their ancestors assumed the title ‘Mathilakam Pilla’ and supervised the day to day activities of the temple. They were also assigned the duty of taking care of the 'Pandara vaka' estates owned by the royals and the temple.

Mathilakam Pilla:

Thiruvananthapuram, the small temple town developed into a capital city during the reign of Veera Marthanda Varma and his illustrious successor Karthika Thirunal Rama Varma (Dharmaraja). Marthanda Varma shifted the capital from Kalkulam to Thiruvananthapuram and started with the renovation works of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple followed by large-scale development activities. Dharmaraja, his successor followed his uncle's footsteps and thus during his reign, Thiruvananthapuram emerged from its status as a 'temple town' to a powerful 'capital city'. The city comprising of the temple and a small population around it transformed into a city during the latter half of the eighteenth century, a fort was created which sort of defined the boundary of the settlement of the elite class and people belonging to lesser castes and profession began settling around it, they were allotted land in accordance with their social positions.

The name Mathilakam Pilla is seen in many records preceding the time of Marthanda Varma, so the mathil or wall mentioned here must be the temple wall, the prakaram which surrounded the Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. There are references of a mud wall surrounding the temple in the old records. Later during the reign of Marthanda Varma orders were given for complete renovation of the temple and a new granite wall occupied the position of the old mud wall. Therefore, as the name suggests, the members of the family supervised the works inside the mathilakam, i.e., the temple.

Social position:

The title Mathilakam Pilla was a significant post that demanded much respect and the family’s alliances with other aristocratic families including the famed Chittaloor Elankom strengthened their roots in the capital city. The connection with temple administration and their loyalty to the royal family made them prosperous. The family also received vast areas of farming lands free of tax from the rulers of Travancore.

In addition to this, they received mada choru, cooked rice from the temple every day and that too in large quantities. According to the present head of the family Mr. Sreekumaran Nair, in old days the karnavar of the family made arrangements to sell this rice and to distribute the rest to the poor.

Locality:

The family is located behind Mukkolakkal Devi temple, on the outskirts of the old capital city; the surrounding regions are marshy farming areas, with many canals and culverts for irrigation. In old days this area was known by the name Thottam, meaning garden. It was common for large temples like Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple to have farming lands in its vicinity, supplying flowers, fruits, grain and other raw materials for the day to day activities of the temple. Padmanabha Swamy temple had numerous paddy fields and gardens surrounding it. Ananthapuravarnanam, a 13th-century composition by an unknown poet provides us with a beautiful description of the temple town. Syanandoorapuranam, another work mentions the temples, sacred groves and numerous ponds of this town. To the southwest of the temple was a temple sacred grove known as Padinjarae Nadakkavu. The author of Ananthapuravarnanam has compared this grove to the nandavanam. According to the elders of the locality, Mukkolakkal and the nearby Thottam regions were ‘gardens’ or rather farmlands which supplied flowers, banana and coconut to the temple and the settlements around it. The members of Swarupathu family were the feudal lords who were the caretakers of these fields and it may be the reason why they settled near Thottam. A large pond by the name ‘Pookulam’ was in existence till recently next to the house, however, now it has been filled and is used as a playground.

Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple and its precincts, with the old 'garden' marked in green**.

Thottam is well known all over Travancore for its Ezhava and Vishwakarma settlements. Many prominent Ezhava families like Vellutheri, Perunelli and Perumpadsherri of the region has produced many gifted poets and scholars, many illustrious members of these families were well-known physicians and were appointed as Kottaram Vaidyanmar to the Kings of Travancore. Many Tamil Vishwakarma guilds such as Thavalodu and Thuppini were engaged in the renovation works of Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple and later they also settled in Thottam.

The house:

The tharavad is made in pure traditional architectural style followed in southern parts of Travancore. The exact date of construction is not available; however, from the looks and the style of construction one can easily infer that it is not less than 250 to 200 years old. The house, in its complete form, was an ettukettu, with rooms arranged around two courtyards. However, one nalukettu constructed using laterite had fallen with time and only the portion made of timber exists today. The existing structure is a perfect example of the traditional architecture of Kerala and bears testimony to the high degree of craftsmanship attained by the traditional craftsmen. The construction of the building is in accordance with the traditional Vastu canons, facing East direction. The major building materials used are timber, for walls and furniture, doors, rafters and thatched coconut leaves for roofing. Exquisite carvings of Goddess Durga, the vyali and parrot motifs along with the lotus and other floral motifs display the expertise of local craftsmen. The walls are made of timber planks which are interlocked. The corner rafters and pillar heads are decorated with carvings. The structure includes a poomukham used by the karnavar of the family; in old days it acted as a transition space in between the main living block and the thekkath, the place of worship. Male guests were entertained in this poomukham, which was detached from the ettukettu. The poomukham has a small sit out space with charupadi and there are rooms on both sides.

The existing nalukettu - Photograph taken by the author.

The intricate carvings - Photographs taken by the author.

The wall separating mens and womens blocks, the small kilivathil used by women can be seen on the left - Photograph taken by the author.

The existing nalukettu block also had an ara that housed the thekkath, where the deities of the family, kalaman kombu (deer antlers) and the ancestors were worshipped. The other rooms were used by the karnavar, in the front verandah there is a wooden cot used by the karnavar with storage space below it, the valuables of the family and important documents were stored there, under the strict vigil of the karnavar. The room near the thekkath served as a storeroom where the large vessels of the family were kept. The inner space around the courtyard was used by the occupants of the family. The adjacent nalukettu which was in ruins had been demolished years ago and according to Mr. Sreekumaran Nair, it was used by the women and children of the family. That portion housed the kitchen, dining space and bedrooms. A wall, painted red, with an opening in its centre separated the two blocks; earlier, women were not allowed to come near the block that housed the family deities. A small kilivathil can still be seen on the wall, once used by the women to communicate with the karnavar and the male members who occupied the first nalukettu.

Life in the joint family:

The Nairs were matrilineal, with the mother’s eldest brother occupying the position of karnavar, the male head of the family who looked after the family, their land and assets. The power and property passed hands to the sons of the karnavar’s sister and never to his children. Though women had no significant role in the society, she was the fulcrum around which the family functioned, the matrilineal system of inheritance ensured their safety and women were respected. The nephews were taken care of by the male head, the karnavar. During post-colonial years, the Land Reforms Ordinance of the 1950s led to massive loss of land-ownership by Nair feudal lords and some Nair gentry were relegated to poverty overnight. However, Swarupathu family is financially sound and many of the members are top brass government officials who are sensitive towards their rich heritage.

Sharat Sunder Rajeev

November 2011.

Note: This article was written two years back when I was doing some research on Thiruvananthapuram and the old families there. I would like to thank Sri Sreekumaran Nair, the present head of Swarupathu Veedu, who was kind enough to spare some time with me. He took me around the old house and shared with me whatever history he knew about the house and the locality.

P. Venugopal and L. Madhavan and late. L. Jalaja (Krishnammal) were some of the elders I contacted to know more about the local history of the area.

The map used here is a cropped portion of the 'Trivandrum Guide Map' (Survey of India 1968-69).

* Alternate spelling for 'Swarupathu Veedu', is 'Swaroopathu Veedu'. In old days there were some families of 'Kaniyanmar' (traditional astrologers) who lived near the house, this was the reason why the house and its surrounding areas later came to be known as 'Kaniyan Vilakam'.

** Since I was not able to come across any proper records showing the extent of the old garden, I have conjecturally marked it in the map.