Archives / January 2019

 ANAMIKA US St.Thomas School Trivandrum
A TRIP TO PADMANABHAPURAM PALACE…

. A DOOR CLANGED WITH AN ENDURING MEMORY AND I STILL LISTENED TO THE REPEATED 

ECHOES…

IT WAS A DAY WHEN WE ENJOYED A LOT…WITH FLOURISHING SONNET OF HAPPINESS!

WE WENT TO THE ‘PADMANABHAPURAM PALACE’ IN THUCKALAY, KANYAKUMARI DISTRICT, 

TAMILNADU. THE PALACE, THOUGH LOCATED IN KANYAKUMARI, COMES UNDER THE 

ADMINISTRATION OF THE ‘GOVERNMENT OF KERALA ARCHAEOLOGY DEPARTMENT’. 

BUILT ON A PECULIAR LANDSCAPE, THE PALACE OWNS A DISTINCTIVE CULTURE AND 

ARCHITECTURE. SOME OF THOSE UNIQUE ROOMS MESMERIZED ME A LOT. IT CONSISTED OF THE 

GREAT MANTRASALA, THAI KOTTARAM, NATAKSALA, CLOCK TOWER ETC…

THESE ALL REMINDED ME OF THE MOVIES LIKE MANICHITHRATHAZHU. LATER I KNEW THAT SUCH 

MOVIES WERE SHOT THERE. THE PALACE WAS BUILT IN 1601 AD BY A RULER CALLED IRAVI VARMA 

KULASEKHARA PERUMAL, WHO DEDICATED THIS ENTIRE STRUCTURE TO HIS FAMILY DEITY. IT WAS 

RENOVATED IN 1750. THAI KOTARAM IS ABOUT 400 YEARS OLD AND CLOCK TOWER IS 300. KING 

MARTHANDA VARMA DEDICATED THIS STRUCTURE TO HIS FAMILY DEITY, LORD PADMANABHA.

THE HOT AND COOL BREEZE SWALLOWED MY WORN-OUT BODY WHICH REFRAINED ME FROM 

NAVIGATING MORE.! I FELT SOMETHING HISTORIC AS I TOUCHED THE GLEAMING ROOFS AND 

WALLS.

  

THE KINGS’ BEDROOMS ARE IN THE FIRST FLOOR. THE DUTCH MERCHANTS GAVE THEM AN 

ORNAMENTAL BEDSTEAD MADE UP OF 64 TYPES OF PRECIOUS HERBAL AND MEDICINAL WOODS.

THOSE FINE WOODEN STEPS WILL LEAD TO THE BATHING POND. 

THE PREPOSSESSING FRONT LOOK, THE GALLERY OF PAINTINGS ILLUSTRATING THE PREHISTORIC 

ACHIEVEMENTS OF TRAVANCORE, STONE SCULPTURES, FURNITURE OF GLAZED METALS, CHINESE 

JARS, RAZOR-SHARP SWORDS, DAGGERS, BRASS LAMPS, AN EXTENSIVE HALL WHERE FEASTS ON 

GREAT OCCASSIONS FOR 1000 GUESTS WERE HELD, POWERFULLY BUILT WELLS AND THE TOILETS, 

MADE ME THINK ABOUT THE UNRELEIVED MODERN WORLD FULL OF ENGAGED LIVES AND CRIMES…

A CONFIDENTIAL PASSAGE THROUGH WHICH THE MEMBERS COULD ESCAPE FOR THE EMERGENCY 

CONDITIONS IS KNOWN AS THE CHAROTTU KOTTARAM. IT IS ONLY A FEW KILOMETRES AWAY. THE 

PALACE IS NOW BLOCKED. 

 

 

 

THE SOUTHERN PALACE CONSISTS OF THE THAI KOTTARAM. IT IS THE QUEEN MOTHER’S PALACE 

SERVING AS A HERITAGE SITE, CONSISTING THE VINTAGE COLLECTION OF HOUSEHOLD OBJECTS. THE 

THAI KOTTARAM SHARES A CULTURAL INSIGHT. THE GROUND FLOOR IS FOR THE ROYAL TREASURY. 

THE SECOND FLOOR AS THE RESTROOM AND THE TOP AS A WORSHIP CHAMBER.

KANYAKUMARI IS FAMOUS FOR GANDHI MEMORIAL, BEACH, ROCK MEMORIALS ETC. BUT ITS 

ETERNAL BEAUTY IS PADMANABHAPURAM PALACE, THE FORMER ROYAL CAPITAL OF 

TRAVANCORE(LATER SHIFTED), 64 KM AWAY FROM OUR PLACE.….

THEN I THOUGHT, THE GOD GAVE ME THE CHARMING EYES NOT TO SEE THE ARTIFICIAL AND 

CONTRIVED WORLD, BUT TO PERCEIVE THE IMMORTAL ANCIENT BEAUTY. FROM THAT I 

UNDERSTOOD THAT THE GOD KEPT SOME BESTOWED REMNANTS AS PALACES LIKE THESE TO SHOW 

MANKIND, THE EVERLASTING HUMILITY WAS THOSE ANCIENT TIMES… WE CAN UNDERSTAND LIKE A 

BOOK FROM THESE PROSPEROUS STRUCTURES...” OLD IS GOLD!”

 

                                                          

 

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