Kavalappara palace in ruins
Kavalappara swaroopam was the confederation of 96 Desams that lies in between Kaniyampuram thodu eastern side and Ongallur thodu in the west.it stretches around Mundakkottukurissi towards the north and Bharathappuzha flows as the southern boarder.the southern boarder stretching area s of the eight-acre of the Kavalappara .Kavalappara swaroopam was a unique state that was in full bloom in the medieval Kerala.It is the residence of the Kavalappara Nair..the estate which are extensive be partly in the Palakkad taluk and partly intheValluvanad thaluk andearst while in the Cochin state.the total area of the state is about 17000 acres most of it being paddy fields and the major portion of it is under peculiar sort of land tenure.known as Kanam tenure,
swaroopam head quarters.
There are various stories about the origin of the state.The generally acccepted one is given in the gazette of ,Malabar.The family is said to have acquired the state from Cheraman perumal on his departure for Meccca.when Nair arrived Cheraman Perumal had distributed all his territory to different rulers. except a block of 12 square miles in Nedunganadu.., which no one wanted.,because of the rocks.the Nair accepted the tracks finding it to be not all the rocks …gave the name Kavalappara…the false rock.
Pathayappura. Kavalappara palace
There was proof enough to show that chief in the olden days were quite independant .Logans manuaql of Malabar district says on the same day Kavalappara Nair ackwnledged honourable companies sovereignty and was installed in his territory for one year.
KAVALAPPARA PALACE.
Palace, which once stood for royalty and grandeur, is a near-on the brink of collapse and turned to be an asylum for breeds of reptiles.
What is more disheartening is the state of neglect surrounding the 10,000 rare records of the ancient Mooppil Nair family, the legendary landlords who owned the palace and ruled swathes of land that came under Valluvanad and erstwhile Cochin state. The Kavalappara Swaroopam , as the records are known, are now feasted by moths
view through the damaged window space
Historians say the family ruled over 31.079 sq.km area located in and around the present Shornur, which was given to them by the famous king Cheraman Perumal, who controlled the Malabar region.
The palace’s descent to the present state began in the sixties when the litigations involving the descendants of the Mooppil Nair family began, leading to the area being placed under the receiver rule.
Though the main buildings have been auctioned in the middle of eighties and the contractors have removed them completely, some structures like an Oottupura and Maalika Chuvadu still remain, evoke a unique old world charm despite the ruin.
palace with vanishing grandeur.
The Cheraman Perumal gave the land to the Kavalpara Mooppil Nair family, who administered the area with his managers or Karyasthans. But shortly after the death of the head of the family, Karakkat Kumaran Raman Kochunni Mooppil Nair in 1964, the disputes among the successors of the family began. Court cases since 1967 led to the Kavalappara Estate in Shoranur and some other properties of the palace in Palakkad district being placed under the receiver administration. Sri. O.P. Balakrishnan, who wrote a book on the rich legacy of the family that once threatened even the monpoly of Zamorins in Malabar
cheruppe siva temple close to palace
.“The biggest Pooram festival in Malabar used to take place at the Aryankavu temple in Shoranur, which was owned by the Mooppil Nair family.Spectacular ritual:of the Pooram is the Kuthira s (horses ) of sixty nine desamsworshipping the Bhagavathy marking the end of the 21-day-long Shoranur-Kavalappara-Aryankavu Pooram in Palakkad The Poornam , which is still held in the Malayalam month of Meenam 1 to 21, hasnt drained the festival of its charm though number of participating Desams were reduced.
“The Pooram was the held with the participation of 96 villages under the Kavalappara Swaroopam(the jurisdiction of the Kavalappara Mooppil family),The Iruppe Shiva temple is situated closely to the palace remains auspicious throughout the year.
palace in ruins
There were demands to protect the palace and its valuable records. Despite promises from the State government, no proper initiative has been taken to protect the heritage and the historical documents that throw light on the administration of the erstwhile Swaroopams .
It is high time the Archaeological Department intervened. Any lapse would destroy a vast pool of resources throwing light on the medieval history of Kerala.
Kavalappara palace
the ruling chiefs ,nobles and zamindars of india was written by a vadivelu in 1915.
Kavalappara Palace, home of the Mooppil Nairs, is in a state of heavy ruin.
palace interior
Despite there being demands to protect the palace and its valuable records, nearly 10,000 odd records of Kavalappara Swaroopam, are in a state of neglect at the Kavalappara Palace. Palace.
palace with fading splendour
Years ago organisations such as Janajagratha sent a memorandum to the Minister for Cultural Affairs about the need to protect the heritage and the historical documents that throw light on the administration of the erstwhile Swaroopams. The Kavalappara Palace had a great collection of palm leaves and other old documents and most of them are in the old Malayalam script. According to the archives department the documents were in an utter state of neglect.
Eruppe shiva temple
it is an important that conserving this fading heritage of Valluvanad.. Kavalappara’s history continues to be a collection of aural legends and folktales and their historical remains are vast and paramount in understanding the affluent cultural heritage of Malabar. Conservation is needed at the earliest to save this vanishing heritage wonder..