A land known for its coffee and renowned for its generals and warriors, the history of Kodagu has never been traced to its origins, the thread of descent becoming a tangled knot of colonial theories and hearsays. But history is important for one to realise the essence of culture and one’s own identity. Without this realisation, much is lost, and more is at risk.
Kodagu has always been placed in the category of the areas that complied silently with the British, when in reality, its contributions were simply underplayed and whitewashed. Many braves from all backgrounds had been leaders and warriors in their own right, following Gandhian ideals and fighting passionately for freedom.
The PM’s YUVA Mentorship scheme was an opportunity to shrug off this stereotype and uncover the truth. The Lost Heroes of Kodagu talks of those men and women who looked danger in the eye, unflinching even as blows landed on them left and right. It talks of those who rose and made sure their voices were heard despite attempts to muffle them. Those that history let slip through cracks and crevices, silent and dormant.
Recover them as you read. Watch as they come alive through the pages. Be inspired by their grit and determination, be empowered by their stories. But most of all – remember them, keep them in glorious memory.
Bacharaniyanda Appanna teaching I M Muthanna’s script at the Kodava Sahitya Academy in Madikeri.
Featuring unique words and vowels not found elsewhere, the Kodava language, spoken in Kodagu, is an independent Dravidian language. According to the most recent data from the Karnataka Kodava Sahitya Academy, there were 21 castes living in Kodagu who spoke the Kodava language: the Kodavas, Amma Kodavas, Kodagu Heggades, Kembattis, Airis, Koyuvas, Boonepattas and the Gollas (Eimbokalas), to name a few.
Kodagu was an independent principality in South India between 1633 and 1834. After the British annexed Kodagu in 1834, it was called Coorg and became a province of British India. After Independence, Coorg was retained as a state and placed under a chief commissioner. In 1956, when the states of the Indian Union were reorganised, Coorg became a district of Karnataka state.
Kannada was the official language in Kodagu for much of its existence. The Kodava language generally uses the Kannada script.
The earliest inscriptions found in Kodagu date back to the 9th and 10th centuries and are in Kannada. But there were two peculiar 14th-century inscriptions of Kodagu, dated around 1370-1371 AD found in the Bhagandeshwara temple of Bhagamandala and the Mahalingeshwara temple of Palur. Many have dismissed the inscriptions as a mixture of scripts and languages. In 2021, my work involved isolating letters used in both. I labelled the script used ‘thirke’ (meaning ‘temple’).
Several scripts
There have been a number of scripts invented for the Kodava language in the last 150 years or so. Koravanda Appayya, a doctor in the erstwhile Mysore State, had invented one with around 50 letters in 1887.
Kodagu scholar Iychettira M Muthanna invented another alphabet for the language in 1970. Appaneravanda Kiran Subbaiah, a sculptor in Mysuru, invented one in 1980. In 1983, he introduced a variant of the Kannada script to accommodate the Kodava language. Often, Kannada or Roman characters (the script used for English) were adapted, sometimes with additional changes.
Ponjanda S Appaiah, a professor, used the Roman script with his own transliteration system in 2003 to write in the Kodava language. In his Kodava-English dictionary, Appaiah used combinations of English letters for the Kodava language. He authored the entire book in the Roman script.
On the other hand, the ‘Kodava Arivole’ (Kodava dictionary) by Boverianda Uthaiah is in the Kannada script and makes use of 35 of the 49 Kannada letters.
In 2005, German linguist Gregg Cox introduced the Coorg-Cox script. Three years later, Charles Henry Kumar, a teacher from Mandya brought out another script to write the Kodava language.
Extra sounds
Boverianda Nanjamma and Chinnappa say that in addition to the five rounded Kannada vowels (with both long and short forms), the Kodava language has four unrounded vowels in their short and long forms and a nasal sound which accompanies some of the consonants. They have used five diacritical marks (symbols added above letters to indicate accent, tone and stress) in their works to accommodate these extra sounds.
In February 2022, under the presidentship of Ammatanda Parvathi Appaiah, the Karnataka Kodava Sahitya Academy discussed the various scripts used for the Kodava language. Bacharaniyanda Appanna, a former president of the academy, taught those assembled the script invented by I M Muthanna.
Upon comparison, it was declared that Muthanna’s script was the easiest to learn. The Kodava Sahitya Academy then recommended the Muthanna script to the Central Institute of Indian Languages to be made official.
Muthanna was of the opinion that his script was to be taught to children below the age of 15-16 years, says Appanna. “They will learn with passion and help promote the script when they write in it and inspire others,” he adds.
On why a script is important, Appanna says: “A script adds strength to a language, like how pillars strengthen a house. Yet, there are many prominent languages which do not have their own script. English uses Roman, Hindi uses Devanagari.” Having a native script is also important as it accommodates native sounds otherwise not found in other scripts.
Nerpanda Prathik Ponnanna, a language activist, has been popularising the Muthanna Kodava script by creating awareness about it through social media videos. He has also been getting signboards in the script for various shops, ancestral houses, and hockey tournament family teams.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Spectrum / by Mookonda Kushalappa / May 10th, 2023
Pan-India actress and ‘National Crush of India’ Rashmika Mandanna is ‘Coorg Person of the Year-2022.’
Rashmika, hailing from Virajpet in Kodagu (Coorg) district, was selected ‘Coorg Person of the Year’ in a poll conducted by www.coorgtourisminfo.com, Kodagu’s first news portal promoted by journalist and author P.T. Bopanna.
Rashmika Mandanna, who achieved phenomenal success in the pan-India movie ‘Pushpa-The Rise,’ has brought focus on the tiny hill district of Coorg, a popular tourist destination inhabited by the Kodavas, who have a unique culture.
Rashmika, who has become a household name through her acting and dancing skills, has emerged as an unofficial ‘brand ambassador’ for Kodagu culture. She has thrown the spotlight on the Kodava (Coorg) saree which involves tucking the pleats at the back of the waist, instead of the front. She has also popularised Coorg cuisine through her media interactions.
On the professional front, she is the reigning queen in the Telugu film industry and made her debut in Bollywood through ‘Goodbye’ starring Amitabh Bachchan. Rashmika-starrer ‘Mission Majnu’ is set for a January 20 release on Netflix.
Rashmika, who made her acting debut in the Kannada film ‘Kirik Party’ in 2016, has been associated with commercially successful films that include ‘Anjani Putra’ (2017), ‘Geetha Govindam’ (2018), ‘Yajamana’ (2019), ‘Sarileru Neekevvaru’ (2020), ‘Pogaru’ (2021) and ‘Sita Ramam’ (2022). Rashmika made her Tamil entry with ‘Sulthan’ opposite Karthi.
Born on April 5, 1996, she is the daughter of Mundachadira Madan Mandanna and Suman.
She did her schooling at the Coorg Public School (COPS), Gonikoppal, Kodagu. She studied for a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Journalism and English Literature at the M.S. Ramaiah College of Arts, Science and Commerce in Bengaluru.
Along with her studies, she took up modelling. Rashmika got a break after she won the ‘Times Fresh Face’ title in 2014. There has been no looking back ever since.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / January 03rd, 2023
Lt. Col. M.A. Smitha of Mysuru has become the first Kodavathi Woman Army Officer to be selected for promotion to the rank of Colonel.
Commissioned to Army Service Corps (ASC) in 2005 from Officers Training Academy (OTA), Chennai, she has had a illustrious career of 18 years in the Army service in challenging appointments and locations across the country.
A few major achievements include a tenure in UN Peace Keeping Mission in Israel and Syria (UNDOF) where she was awarded a Force Commander’s Commendation Card for displaying exemplary courage under challenging situations.
She displayed her multi-talented skills in 2013 by winning the Raid Himalayan Car Rally along with her Army Team in a Gypsy in women’s category. She also summited Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa, in 2014.
A native of V. Nalkeri in Kakotuparambu, Virajpet taluk, Smitha is the daughter of ESM HSM, Mevada S. Appanna [37 (Coorg) Medium Regiment and 35 Medium Regiment] and Radha, who are presently residing at Vijayanagar 3rd Stage, Mysuru. She is married to Col. Mandepanda Aiyappa (Maratha Light Infantry) and they are blessed with two daughters.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / April 14th, 2023
Kodava traditions and celebrations are centred around a rich oral folk tradition. Mookonda Kushalappa tells the stories of those that kept it alive.
During the times of the Rajas, writing was not popular among the Kodavas of Kodagu, who were paddy farmers and cattle herdsmen.
In the absence of literature, the region was rich in oral folklore. A song was sung for every occasion — songs were sung during the annual village festival and during the harvest festival Puththari. Songs were sung for weddings and funerals. Four singers would carry small hourglass drums called dudi and beat them with small, curved sticks. These rustic songs often had the same rhythm.
The compiler
A key force in chronicling these oral traditions was Nadikerianda Chinnappa. Chinappa was born in 1875 in Karada village.
In 1899, he joined the revenue department and wrote an English poem “My position as Shanbhog”. In 1900, he became a Revenue Inspector. In 1902, he joined the Indian Army’s Coorg Regiment and became a Subedar Major. Two years later, the regiment was disbanded and he joined the police department.
Subedars Codanda Ayyanna, Bolachanda Nanjappa and Nadikerianda Chinnappa of the Coorg Regiment, Fraserpet (Kushalnagar), 1902. Photo courtesy Boverianda Nanjamma Chinnappa
After his training from Vellore, he became an SI in Kushalnagar. Thereafter, he was transferred to Napok, Srimangala and Virajpet until he was made prosecuting inspector in Madikeri.
In 1917, he created a Kodava prayer called ‘Sri Moola Kanniye’, addressed to ‘the first maiden’ or Parvathi who was incarnated as Kaveri. This came to be known as the Kodava anthem. He also composed a Kannada poem in honour of the deity of Chomamale hill, Somagiri Deva.
During his free time, he would ride through the countryside on horseback. He would visit folk singers and every time he heard an interesting song, he would bring the singer home. His wife would cook food for the singer, while Chinnappa would offer him toddy. The singer would beat the dudi and sing the song while Chinnappa wrote it down.
By 1922, he had extensively collected several folk songs which were sung during various ceremonies and festivals such as the Kaveri Song, the Wedding Song, the Funeral Song and the Puththari Harvest Song, along with 750 proverbs and idioms.
The folk songs were divided into categories based on when they were sung or in praise of whom they were sung — customs and ceremonies, festivals, heroes and deities. He published a compilation, titled ‘Pattole Palame’ in 1924. The Pattole Palame is one of the earliest compilations of folklore in India.
The name Pattole Palame was originally used for old palm-leaf records kept by astrologers in Kodagu. It comes from the words ‘patt-ole’ (silk leaves) ‘palame’ (lore), meaning oral traditions recorded on palm leaves, which were like silk.
Between 1894 and 1928, G A Grierson, a civil servant, conducted the Linguistic Survey of India. A knowledgeable speaker was invited from every known Indian language. The person had to narrate a translated biblical parable and either sing a song or narrate a story in the language.
In 1922, Chinnappa was recorded narrating the ‘Prodigal Son’ in Kodava language. He also sang his own composition, ‘Sri Moola Kanniye’. These gramophone recordings were sent to the British Library’s Sound Archives and the Madras Museum.
The language was recorded as ‘Kodaga’ and wrongly identified as being from Madras. The narrator was uncredited and the song was called ‘Coorg national anthem: Swadesi priya kirtane’. It was in the 1970s that Chinnappa’s voice was identified by his son Subbayya when he listened to the Madras Museum recording.
In 1929, Chinnappa translated the Bhagwat Gita into Kodava and called it ‘Bhagvathanda paat’. Krishna was called by his Kodava name Kuttappa in this book.
The translators
Chinappa’s legacy has been kept alive by his descendants, including his grandson Boverianda Muthanna Chinnappa, fondly nicknamed Bobjee. After working as an engineer in India and various countries abroad, Boverianda Chinnappa became an entrepreneur in Canada. He married his cousin Nadikerianda Nanjamma, another grandchild of Nadikerianda Chinnappa.
Nanjamma worked as a statistician and taught statistics in India and Canada. She co-authored a book on Business Survey Methods. In 1993, she was elected a fellow of the American Statistical Association.
After their retirement, Boverianda Chinnappa and Nanjamma returned to India. Their translation of Pattole Palame into English was published in 2003. Nanjamma’s brother renowned cartoonist N Ponnappa illustrated the cover of the book.
The Pattole Palame book cover
The couple visited nearly 1,720 clans in Kodagu over the years to research ainmanes. Their work was compiled into a book called ‘Ainmanes of Kodagu’ and an online website.
The author (extreme left) with Boverianda Chinnappa and Nanjamma in 2018. Photo courtesy: Iynanda Dinesh Monnappa, Cauvery Studio, Ammathi
In 2006, Nanjamma received a Mangalore University honorary doctorate from the Governor of Karnataka. That same year, she won the ‘Coorg Person of the Year’ award.
Boverianda Chinnappa passed away on March 10 this year. He is survived by his wife, two daughters and their families.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Spectrum / by Mookonda Kushalappa / April 05th, 2023
Devanira K. Appaiah, a teacher, received the prestigious President’s Award for teaching from the then President Dr. S. Radhakrishnan in 1962.
He may have been the first Kodava to wear a kupiya-chale (traditional Kodava men’s attire) for the ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Appaiah is the father of Raghu and Sanju from Ammathi, Kodagu. (Pic. courtesy: WhatsApp)
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles (above part of the article ) by Prof. G. L. Shekhar / Top Stories / April 10th, 2023
National Security Guard (NSG) Force Commander Brigadier B.M. Cariappa (Baleyada Muthanna Cariappa) was conferred the prestigious ‘Rotary Sainik Desh Rathna’ award at a programme jointly organised by Rotary Mysore Midtown and Shrisainik Foundation at Rotary Centre Hall on JLB Road here yesterday.
Speaking after conferring the award, Col. (retd.) Ravi Shirahatti lauded the acts of Brig. B.M. Cariappa during the victorious Kargil War against Pakistan.
Pointing out that Brig. Cariappa’s achievements and works are a model to young servicemen as well as armed service aspirants, Ravi Shirahatti said that though several will be willing to don Army uniform, it is not possible for many.
Noting that donning the Army uniform is a pride for everyone, he said that it is important to understand the past and history of Wars. Maintaining that those serving in the Army should be ready for sacrifice, he said, as such, the honour of Armymen will continue even after their retirement from service. Observing that a tree’s future depends upon the deep-rootedness and sturdiness of its roots, he said that the service profession demands valour, integrity, sacrifice and commitment. In the absence of these, the purpose of serving in the Army cannot be fulfilled, he said adding that he (Ravi) feels proud to have served the Indian Army.
Brig. Cariappa who spoke after being conferred with the award, reminisced on how he led his group during the 1999 Kargil War.
Noting that the first two attempts of the Indian Army in capturing the Khalubar Hills in Kashmir had failed, he said that he was then entrusted with the responsibility of capturing it, following which he came up with an innovative operation and succeeded in doing the job.
Explaining how the Kargil War was won, he said that crucial decisions were taken by the Indian Army during the War which resulted in a crushing defeat for Pakistan’s misadventure.
Earlier, Brig. Cariappa was accorded a grand welcome at the venue with Hootagalli KHB Colony’s Rotary Midtown Academy students playing Musical Instruments and saluting him.
Rotary Midtown President Rtn. M.S. Naveen Chandra, Hon. Secretary Rtn. S. Kumaraswamy, Rtn. K.L. Rakesh Babu, Rtn. S. Abhilash and others were present.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / February 23rd, 2023
In 1930, the tiranga was hoisted at a number of villages in Kodagu district.
The Madikeri fort, where freedom fighters replaced the Union Jack with the Tricolour. Credit: Special Arrangement
In 1928, Paruvangada Kushalappa attended the annual Congress session in the then Calcutta (now Kolkata) and was returning to Kodagu when he fell ill and passed away.
He was 38 years old and the president of the Coorg Agricultural Society.
The following year, an area in Ponnampet was named after him as Kushalapura and the tiranga (the Indian tricolour flag) was regularly hoisted there.
This flag was the old design which had three colours as well. In 1930, the tiranga was hoisted at a number of villages in Kodagu district.
That year, Mallengada Chengappa and two others removed the Union Jack at the Mercara (Madikeri) fort and replaced it with the tiranga.
For this act, they were arrested. Two years later, Satyagrahis again replaced the Union Jack with the tiranga at the fort.
After that, there were permanent guards to protect the Union Jack at the fort.
In August 1942, the Quit India movement had been declared all over India.
Several local leaders such as Pandyanda Belliappa, Chekkera Monnaiah, Kollimada Karumbaiah and C M Poonacha were arrested and deported to Vellore.
The British thought that there was now nobody to lead the movement.But they were wrong.
Gundukutti Narasimhamurthy organised a Seva Dal camp for volunteers in Madikeri. On August 18, Malachira Muthanna and two other students were arrested for hoisting the tiranga in front of the ‘Kodagu’ newspaper office at Madikeri.
On August 19, when students took out processions at various places, at least 12 of them were arrested and released that same evening.
Some of the high school students in Madikeri and Virajpet who had participated in the movement were expelled from their hostels.
They were driven out along with their belongings, suitcases and mattresses placed on their heads. Meanwhile, the British authorities arrested B D Ganapathi, a sub-editor of ‘Kodagu’ weekly, locked the newspaper office and sealed it.
The erstwhile peaceful movement turned violent and went out of control.
In November that year, dynamite parcels addressed to A S Machaiah, Mallengada Chengappa and Mukkatira Belliappa arrived in Kodagu.
The British authorities became alert, confiscated these parcels and arrested the three persons. Yet, this action didn’t stop the subversion that was planned.
Telegraph wires were cut in various places across Kodagu. Dynamite was found placed inside the post office and the police station in Virajpet.
The munsif court building in Virajpet was set on fire. Dynamite was thrown inside the Gonikoppa police station.
Koniyanda Thimmaiah, Mallengada Chengappa and C Chengappa were found guilty of cutting the wires. Chengappa was again arrested, along with, along with the other two.
On August 15, 1947, chief commissioner Diwan Bahadur Ketolira Chengappa replaced the Union Jack with the tiranga at the Madikeri fort, one last time.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State> Karnataka Districts / by Mookonda Kushalappa / August 09th, 2022
The new pattern has more number of multiple choice questions compared to the earlier examinations.
M. Mohan Alva, chairman, Alva’s Education Foundation, Moodbidri offering sweets to Ananya K.A., who topped the commerce stream in the second PU exams in Karnataka. The results were announced on April 21, 2023.
Ananya K.A., topper in the commerce stream of the second pre-university examination, said that the new pattern of the PU exam helped save time in answering the questions.
Ms. Ananya had prepared well for the new pattern that had more number of multiple choice questions compared to the earlier examinations. “I was better prepared,” she told The Hindu.
Ms. Ananya hails from Kushalnagar in Kodagu district. She is the eldest of two daughters of ex-serviceman K. Ashok and government school teacher G. Nalini. She was a student of Adichunchungiri School in Hassan up to class 10. She joined Alva’s Pre-University College, Moodbidri, in Dakshina Kannada district, two years ago under the free education scheme of Alva’s Education Foundation for sportspersons.
“I am a volleyball player. But due to an injury, I had to discontinue sports and concentrate on academics this year,” she told The Hindu.
As she has been staying in a sports hostel since class 8 in Hassan, it was not difficult for her to stay away from her family, in Moodbidri.
She is now preparing for the company secretary entrance examination scheduled on May 1.
Congratulating Ms. Ananya for securing 600/600 marks, M. Mohan Alva, chairman of Alva’s Education Foundation, Moodbidri said this is first time that a commerce student has secured 100% marks in the examination. Mr. Alva said the foundation will continue to offer free education to youngsters with a talent for sports, cultural activities or academics.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Mangaluru / by The Hindu Bureau / April 21st, 2023
The brothers are now looking forward to take part in the Master Games Championship in South Korea in May.
(From right) Belliappa, Machamma and Palekanda Bopaiah on an open jeep
Madikeri :
The Palekanda brothers who landed at Kadanuru in Kodagu, went around an open jeep with Australian Master Games Championship medals dangling from their necks. Palekanda Bopaiah (95) and Belliappa (86) won two medals each.
While Bopaiah won gold in the 100-m race category and a silver in the javelin throw, Belliappa’s golden moment came in the 1500-m walking race and a bronze medal in the 100-m race. “My elder brother actually came first in the javelin throw. However, there were some technical problems, which could not be rectified despite our efforts to convince the jury,” said Belliappa.
“It was tough to get through the registration process,” he said, “because the championship lacked authoritative representation from the nation. Fortunately, Mohan S, a scientist, from Chintamani of Chikkaballapur, helped us.” Mohan bagged a gold medal in the long jump in the 30-plus category.
“Without Mohan, we would not have won these medals. He helped us with the documentation. We will never forget him,” he said.
Meanwhile, 77-year-old Machamma also won a silver medal in the javelin throw. The brothers are now looking forward to take part in the Master Games Championship in South Korea in May. However, they are worried about arranging finances.
“Australian athletes are supported by their government. We hope that our government also supports us,” Belliappa said.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Prajna GR / Express News Service / March 18th, 2023
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