I had visited Karaikudi 35 years ago to attend the wedding of a cousin. It was not that crowded then nor did I see that many shops. Traffic was bearable. It was a different experience when a group of walking friends decided to visit the town recently on a two - in- one trip; to attend the Sadhabhishekam (80th birthday celebration) of one of the members and also visit places of touristy interest in and around Karaikudi. The programme was masterminded by the wife of one of the members whose families belong to Karaikudi also known as capital of Chettinad, land of Chettiars. Traditionally Chettiars are well known as private bankers and money lenders who also believed in philanthrophy . They built temples and educational institutions wherever they settled.
Eight of us decided to travel by two cars, leaving Chennai at 6 am on a Sunday morning. On the way we had breakfast at Murugan Idli, a new branch of the well known chain of restaurants located immediately after crossing Thindivanam on NH 4.While the restaurant offers their famous Sweet Pongal ( Chakra pongal) and Kuzhi Paniyaram to every guest , we found their Podi Uthappam outstanding. After a quick breakfast , we reached the Thappa Gardens, where we were booked, by 1.pm. It is a resort type hotel, with air conditioned cottages surrounded by beautiful greenery, and located within the city limits.
After a simple lunch and a brief rest we were off to see
Athangadi Palace which is
one amongst the many Chettinad Heritage Palaces that are still maintained well.
Although the owner of the Athangudi Palace, left the palace long back. it is still
used by his extended family. It is open to the public with an entry fee of Rs
50 per head.
“A house with 600 ornate windows and 64 grand
rooms! With tiles imported from Italy, coloured glasses brought all the way
from Belgium, intricately carved massive wooden doors and jharokhas! Massive
Varandas covered in Chettinad Tiles. And beautifully coloured artwork all
across” is how a visitor describes this
grand mansion in one of the literatures on the Athangadi Palace. The grandeur of
the palace is to be seen to be believed. The palace follows the three porch
formula – a characteristic seen in most of the Chettinad homes
When you arrive at the central courtyard of the house you see tall
& heavy symmetrical pillars all around the square courtyard giving it a very grand look. Though it is 100 years
old, the house still stands strong. An important landmark worth a visit.
Our next destination was the famous Pillayarpatti
Karpagavinayagar temple-( Ganesha
temple) the first temple on our list of temples to be visited. Pillaiyarpatti Pillaiyar Temple is
a 7th-century CE rock-cut cave shrine. When I visited this temple 35 years ago it had an open
space in front without any of the Mandapams and other paraphernalia which have
cropped up over the years to meet the growing number of devotees visiting the temple. Our visit
coincided with the Sayaratchai Puja (evening puja)which was in progress. Our
group felt blessed to witness the
special aarthi performed as a part of the puja. After spending more than an
hour in the temple we left for our next halt- the Vairavan temple devoted to
Lord Siva in Vairavanpatti which is one of the
nine Nagarathar Clan Temples and belongs
to a few thousand Vairavanpatti Koil
clan members.
It is a private temple
which does not attract big crowds normally. But it comes alive during festive
season when hordes of families attached to the temple living in other parts of
the country or abroad visit the town and participate in the week long
festivities.
After a quiet darshan we
moved to our host`s house for dinner.
We were delighted to see a
variety of delectable tiffin items including some special Chettiar items like Aadi
kummayum ( sweet), Vellai paniyarum, Milagai chutney,. Seeyum , Red rice idiyappam ,
Vengayakose and Podi dosai.
The next morning, after a leisurely breakfast, our first visit
was to the Balaji Temple in Ariyakudi, which was located very close to our
hotel. It was a beautiful temple with a spacious courtyard. The main deity is
called `Alamelu Manga Samedha Thiruvenagada Mudayan` and was as tall as you
find Lord Balaji in Tirupathi. I had goose bumps while offering my prayers as
Balaji is my favourite god. It was a very satisfying visit.
It was now time for us to visit the main item in our itinerary-
visit to the famous Chettinad Maharaja`s Palace located in Kanadukathan village
also known as Kanadukathan palace.
Though visitors are not allowed inside the palace, thanks to the connection
that our host had with the owners of the palace we not only got permission to
see the insides of the palace but were also treated like VIPs.
The palace was built
by S.
Rm. M. Annamalai Chettiar in 1912. With so many beautiful ornamental features, it is
still being used by the descendents of
the original owners, M A M Ramaswamy`s son M A M R Muthiah, whenever he visits Karaikudi. Like other palaces in
Chettinad this palace also represents traditional Chettinad architecture built
using materials like teak wood, marbles and granite pillars imported from
abroad, mainly from East Asian countries and Europe. With a beautiful façade at
the entrance, the main doors and entrances of the houses resemble the gateways
of the Hindu temples.
While Ramaswamy`s family is known for the establishment of
Annamalai University and other educational institutions in Chidamabaram in
Tamil Nadu, Alagappa Chettiar. also known as Vallal Chettiar or the Socialist
capitalist belonging to Karaikudi established
scores of educational institutions in Karaikudi itself . Many campuses of
Alagappa University can be seen on either side of the beautiful & spacious
college road through which we had to pass to go to Chettinad palace.
We finished the
Chettinad Palace visit in time to go to the host`s house for lunch-
again a delectable Chettinad cuisine consisting of special items like Paruppu
masiyal, Capsicum, chole and maavudu inji mandee, Pineapple rasam,. Vazhakai
fry poriyal,.Cauliflower, peas , carrot uppu poriyal & Mango vella pachadi.
Though the majority of us were
vegetarians, the host had ensured that the couple of non vegetarians in the group could taste the
special Chettinad chicken gravy. The lunch was topped with the desert `Kuruvai
arisi (rice) payasam .
Before reaching the lunch venue the two couples in the group
went shopping for Chettinad Kandangi sarees. Karaikudi is also known for Athangudi tiles which are basically cement
tiles like mosaic used for building the palatial houses in the town. Another
interesting piece of news was that Indian overseas bank was founded in 1937 in
Karaikudi by M Ct M Chidamabaram Chettiar.
Next & last item on the agenda was our participation in the
80th birthday ( Sadabhishekam) celebrations of a popular walking
friend Veerappan Chettiar. Sadabhishekam is a religious event conducted to mark
the witnessing of thousand moons by a
man during his long life. Interestingly the celebrations and the associated
rituals were held in a small village called Ilayathangudi from where
Veerappan`s family hailed. It is an hour`s drive from Karaikudi . The rituals
were held in a special mantap,located close to the Shiva temple with which Veeappan`s family is connected.The
function was attended by not only close relatives but also by many friends who
had driven down from Chennai to Karaikudi. It was a grand affair strictly
following the Chettinad practices. The family of Veerappan made us feel like a
part of the family. Needless to say that we not only enjoyed watching the
proceedings but the tasty but simple Chettinad lunch served on the occasion.
Since we had already checked out of our hotel, after partaking
the lunch our group left for Chennai around 1pm on the third day. It was a
memorable trip indeed the memories of which will be cherished for a long time.
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