Kasaragod UnOfficial web blog.. malayalam cinema,kerala,tourism,travels,festivals,hotel

Ranipuram - Kasaragod

2008-01-12T01:22:00.000+05:30

Ranipuram - The wild and the beautiful

An alluring mountain ideal for trekking, lying 780m above sea level.

Ranipuram is located 750m above sea level on the Western Ghats in Kasaragod district. Covered with evergreen shola woods, monsoon forests and grasslands, this beautiful land is known for its trekking trails. Ranipuram was earlier known as Madathumala and its extensive forests merge into those of Karnataka. Wild elephants can be seen wandering on the mountain tops here. Tourist cottages provide comfortable stay on the hills. Jeep and bus services are available from Panathady and Kanhangad in kasaragod town. Ranipuram in its natural beauty is comparable to Ooty - a popular hill station in South India.

Location:About 85 km from Kasaragod town, Kasaragod district, north Kerala

Getting there:
Nearest major railway station: Kasaragod, about 85 km from Ranipuram, on the Kozhikode-Mangalore-Mumbai route.
Nearest airports: Mangalore, about 50 km from Kasaragod; Karipur International Airport, Kozhikode, about 200 km from Kasaragod.

AMMA [Association of Malayalam Movie Artists]

2008-01-07T22:11:00.000+05:30

The major actors and actresses of the Malayalam Cinema has recently formed an organization to safegaurd their interests and to fight against piracy. The Association of Malayalam Movie Artists better know as AMMA ( literal meaning : Mother ) aims to act against piracy, safegaurd the interests of member actors and actresses and act as a common forum to raise concerns and address issues. The organization is generally regarded as successful. The activities of "AMMA" include endowments, insurance schemes, and committees on wages and benefits on revision, fund for research, pensions, education loans for their children etc for the members. The organization has recently entered into Film production to raise funds for its activities.

BDV-523237-BDV

Organic Farming (Kerala)

2008-01-03T15:26:00.000+05:30

'Organic Farming' kerala

malayalam

Thanks to Elizabeth stockholm Sweden and YouTube

Kerala Movie Document

2008-01-03T15:17:00.000+05:30

Real Movie of kerala
Natuaral

Pakkam
A village in the Wayanad district of Kerala, India

Kallu (TODDY) undakunnath engane?

2008-01-03T15:08:00.000+05:30

See how the alcoholic drink 'toddy' is collected from the coconut palm

Kallu Shop Songs

2008-01-03T15:05:00.000+05:30

Kudiyans In TODDY SHOP

Kallukudiyan in the Backwater

2008-01-03T14:42:00.000+05:30

One Of My fav

Bekal Resorts Development Corporation (BRDC)

2007-12-31T23:14:00.000+05:30

It was in the year 1992 the Government of India declared Bekal Fort as a special tourism area. It was with the intention of transforming Bekal Fort into international tourism centre that in the year 1995 the government formed Bekal Tourism Development Corporation.

It is in Chemmanad, Udma, Pallikkara and Ajanur Panchayats that the Bekal tourism project is implemented. At present the corporation is engaged in arranging basic facilities for the project. Corporation has decided to acquire 278 hectares of land for Bekal tourism development

By this time, 178 hectares of land have been acquired. Towards the end of this year, land acquisition will be completed. The Bekal Fort is now under the Archaeological department of the Government of India. Of the 178 hectares of land taken over, 24 hectares are set apart for resort centres and 75 hectares for housing sites. When the land acquisition is over, programmes like water supply, total sanitation, waste incineration, road construction and installation of street lights will be implemented in the project area.

Six beach hotel resorts will be established in the project area on priority in the project area on priority basis. For each resort 30 acres of land will be provided. Of the six resorts two will be started in government sector.

Plans for bettering and increasing basic facilities will be implemented in the four panchayats where Bekal tourism project is implemented. Water supply scheme for the entire people of Pallikkara, Udma, Ajanur and Chemmanad will be implemented. A tank having the capacity of 7 billion litres will also be constructed. Total sanitation programme will be implemented in the four panchayats. As a first phase of this, latrines will be constructed and other sanitation programmes will be carried out in the coastal areas. In the first phase, programmes like waste incineration, road construction and installation of street lights will also be carried out

A Bekal facility centre expending Rs. 35 lakhs was established in 1998 near Bekal Fort. In the facility centre there is an information centre. B.R.D.C. has programme to develop other tourist centres of the district as part of Bekal project. Two House boats have already started functioning at Valiyaparambu this year itself. Boats clubs will be established at Bekal and Chandragiri soon.

BekalFort

2007-12-31T23:11:00.000+05:30

Bekal, situated on the seashore of Pallikara village, is an important place of tourist interest in the district. It lies 12 kms. south of Kasargod town. According to Bekal Rama Nayak, a local Kannada writer, the word, Bekal is derived from the word Baliakulam, meaning Big Palace. The place is said to have been the seat of a big palace in the past. The term Baliakulam got corrupted as Bekulam and later as Bekal.

It was usual in older days for every royal palace to be protected by a fort. The Bekal for might have, therefore, existed even from early days of the Chirakkal Rajas. While giving a description of the Kolathiri Kingdom in his Kerala History, K.P. Padmanabha Menon writes; “The eldest of the male members reigned as sovereign Kolathiri. The next in succession, the heir apparent, was the Thekkelamkur. The residence assigned to him was the Vadakara fort. The third in succession was the Vadakkelamkur in charge of Vekkolath fort. This V(B)ekkolath fort is identified by some scholars as the present Bekal”.

H.A.Stuart, in his Handbook of South Canara (1985), makes this observation: “….. Several forts were built by the Shivappa Nayaks of Badnore between 1650 and 1670 A.D. The two forts of Bekal and Chandragiri were originally under the Kolathiri or Chirakkal Rajas until the time of Shivappa Nayaka’s invasion. Perhaps, the Bednore rulers might have rebuilt and improved it”.

The Bekal fort, which is of great historical and archaeological interest, is the largest and best preserved of its kind in the district and the land on which it is situated, runs into the sea with fine bay towards the south. According to the South Canara Mannual, Bekaln fort fell into the hands of Haider Ali in 1763. It housed the Huzur of Canara during Tipu’s time and the remains of a gallow reminiscent of the days of Mysorean occupation were seen here till a few years back. After the overthrow of Tipu Sultan in 1799, Bekal was incorporated into the dominions of the English East India Company. The erstwhile Kasaragod taluk of South Canara district was known as Bekal for more than half a century.

The Bekal fort is now under the Archeological Department of the Government of India.

There is a Travellers’ Bungalow, maintained by the PUBLIC Works Department of the State Government within the Bekal fort. The natural scenery at Bekal is alluring and makes a visit to the place an exhilarating experience. There is a recently renovated temple dedicated to Hanuman, at the entrance to Bekal. An old mosque is also situated very near the fort and this is believed to have been founded by Tipu Sultan.

KavyaMadhavan

2007-12-31T22:59:00.000+05:30

Kavya Madhavan, a soft spoken, good looking and talented young south Indian heroine is one of the most successful actresses of her kind so far. With her adaptability and unique girl next door image, she has become one of the most valued stars of the Malayalam film industry and shares successful screen chemistry with several top heroes. Some of the most successful Malayalam films that have been born in the past few years bear her name on the credit board.
Though most of her roles have been monotonous as some of her critics says; she sure have been successful enough to make a mark of her on in the industry and most importantly in the hearts of millions of average moviegoers and house viewers. She is so immensely popular among the family viewers that many of them consider her as one of her family members.
Kavya Madhavan was born on September 19, 1984 in the village of Nileshwaram in Kasargod district, Kerala, India. Her father is P.Madhavan and mother Shyamala. She did her schooling at Nileswaram Rajas High School and during this period she learned dance and participated in numerous competitions and won prizes. She had a hidden love for acting ever since she was a child and this love didn’t stay dormant for long and she was quick into the movies.Her dancing and other artistic abilities made her entry to the film field a lot easier than it was for some of her older counterparts. She started as a child artist and usually played the child state of the main heroine of the movie.
She has done many roles as a child but the one which brought her all the fame was the role in Azhakiya Ravanan (1996). She has got decent attention from this movie and after the success of this one she never had to look back. Opportunities came her way and her star value was growing along with her body.
Her first movie featuring her as a child star was released in 1991 and since then she has signed in over forty films many of which are big hits. Last year she had big hits in Malayalam like ‘Classmates’, ‘Athisayan’ and ‘Chakkara Muthu’.
Kavya is currently filming several new movies like ‘Moonnu Pennungal’ and ‘Sadhu Mirandal’. She tasted some decent success in Tamil as well. Her first Tamil film ‘Kasi’ fared well at box office. But she has been a little reluctant to accept more Tamil movies may be because of the kind of skin exposure that demands to be a successful actress in Tamil industry.Many of her recent films are well accepted by both common audiences and critics. The reason behind her success is not a secret anymore. Everybody knows that she is talented, committed young actress and she is also someone who has been successful enough to develop her own style and standards.

Kavya Madhavan in debutante P.Sukumaram's film.

2007-12-31T01:53:00.000+05:30

Kavya Madhavan, who recently finished her Tamil film Sadhu Mirandaa and also her Malayalam film Kangaroo, is all set to play the key role in a film by a debutante director, P. Sukuram who is casting her in the lead role in his debut film Kalabhamazha, which he himself will be scripting.

The film will be produced under the banner of Ashwathy Arts, a new production house.

The Pooja and switch on ceremony for the film was held recently in Thiruvananthapuram and it was business man-cum-producer Gokulam Gopalan who lit the inaugural lamp, at the function which was presided over by Minister C. Divakaran.

The makers announced at the function that the returns from the film would go to a charitable institution, the Lopamudra Charitable Trust in Palakkad.

No details about the cast, the theme, the team behind the film or the probable shooting date have yet been announced.

Kalabhamazha would most likely be a heroine oriented film, but given the present situation in Malayalam Cinema, it is to be seen if the film really makes any money to be donated for charity!!

Nayanthara's rate Rs 75 Lakhs.

2007-12-31T01:49:00.000+05:30

After her big show in Billa-2007, Nayanthara hiked her rate for a whopping Rs 75lakhs per

film. The big news is that a big producer has accepted to pay this amount to Nayanthara for

his next movie with Vijay. Nayanthara has now become a hot babe in south screen.

She has a big market in Telugu and considered as the lucky artist there. So every producer

wants her to appear in their films in at least for an item number. At present, she is acting

in only one film with Danush, Yaradi Nee Mohini, the remake of Telugu super hit, Aadavari…

made by Selvaraagavan.

Few days before she did signed a film with Vijay. The producer, cast and crew of the movie
is yet to be announced. Now Prabhu also having talks with the actress for his next

production venture with Ajith which is going to be announced shortly. Being professional,

the actress is going to sign a project in Telugu also. But she had declined two offers from

her own land, Malayalam recently!

Mohanlal and Kavya in 'Maadambi'

2007-12-31T01:09:00.001+05:30

Kavya Madhavan is for the first time teaming up with superstar Mohanlal, in the lead for the new film 'Maadambi'.

Directed by the scriptwriter B Unnikrishnan, the film will have Mohanlal as Gopalakishna Pillai, a private financier, who runs the business in the most ethical way.

In this project which blends humor and action, Kavya will appear as Jayalekshmi, who works for a new generation bank which opens a new branch in the village.

The film which will also feature Jagathy, Sreenivasan, Siddhique and Jayasuriya in other important roles is all set to start its shooting by the early weeks of the New Year.

The film will have Mohanlal speaking a special dialect of the middle Kerala.

Produced in the banner of Soorya Cinema by V C Joshy, the director and his crew expects this film to work wonders in box office.

Demography

2007-12-30T23:49:00.000+05:30

Mujamkavu Parthasarathi Kshetram Annual Festival

2007-12-30T23:44:00.000+05:30

The temple is situated in Ednad village of Kasaragod taluk, 4 Kms. east of Kumbla. The annual festival lasts for seven days during February every year. On the day of 'Thulava Sankramam' a large number of devotees attend the temple for Theertha Snanam, holy bath which is said to be curing skin diseases.

Madhur Srimad Anantheswara Vinayaka Temple annual festival

2007-12-30T23:40:00.000+05:30

During the month of March/April every year. 7 days festival. Special festival Moodappa seva conducted periodically in view of the huge expenses involved. A large number of devotees attend the festival.

Annual Festival at Anantheswara Temple, Manjeswaram

2007-12-30T23:37:00.000+05:30

The annual car festival of the temple is on the Marga Shira month usually between the 3rd week of November and 3rd week of December. It is also called Shashti festival, which attracts thousands of devotees and pilgrims.

Sarvajanika Ganeshotsavam at Kasargod Town

2007-12-30T23:34:00.000+05:30

This festival is celebrated during September every year in connection with Ganesh Chathurthi, by the local people under the banner of Sarvajanika Ganeshotsava Samithi, Kasaragod.
A big idol of Lord Ganesha is made with clay and adorned for five or seven days conducting poojas and on the last day the idol is taken with a procession through the town and to immerse in the Temple tank.
This festival attracts thousands of devotees.
Ganesh Chathurthi day has been declared as public holiday in Kasargod District.

FAIRS, FESTIVALS & FOLK ARTS

2007-12-30T23:32:00.000+05:30

Kasargod, the land of charity, is rich in folk-culture, visual arts and festivals.
Different religions, groups and communities in their historical evolution
have subscribed to the growth of a dream like panorama of
folk art and visual art forms in the region.

Some of them are religious, highly ritualistic, but incorporate
dance, music, colours and light. There may be regional
variations in respect of rituals and songs but the visual appearance has no much variations.
Theyyam, Kolkali, Poorakkali, Yakshaganam, Kallampattu,
Porattu, Oppana, Mappillapattu, etc. are the famous folk arts of the District.
Kasaragod is also famous for its Cock-fight, and Buffullo race.

Kasaragod is a land of temples, mosques and churches.
Boothasthanam of Hindus, Makham Uroos of Muslims and
Perunnals of Christians are the famous.
The festivals of Boothasthanams are known as Kalliyattam or Theyyam.

Climate

2007-12-30T23:18:00.000+05:30

Temperature
The diversity of the physical features results in a corresponding diversity of climate.
The climate of the district is classified as warm, humid and tropical.
The average maximum temperature is 31.2oC and minimum is 23.6oC.
Though the mean maximum temperature is only around 90oF,
the heat is oppressive in the moisture laden atmosphere of the plains.
Humidity is very high and rises to about 90 percent during the south-west monsoon.
The annual variation of temperature is small, the diurnal range is only about 10oF.

Rainy Season

The mean annual rainfall of the district is 3581mm, which is highest in the state.
(The state average is 3063).
The south west monsoon starts towards the end of May or the beginning of June,
heralded by thunder-storms and hold till September when the monsoon fades out.
October-November brings the north-east monsoon.
Out of the total rainfall, the months June, July & August experience 2/3 of the quantity.

Rainfall during the year 2001 in mm.

Total Rainfall - 3626 mm.

Summer & Winter
Dry weather from December to February. March to May is the hot season.
The coolest months of the year are January-February.

Malayalam cinema

2007-12-13T22:19:00.000+05:30

Kerala: The Legacy of Visual Culture

Even much before the arrival of cinema, the people of Kerala were familiar with moving images on the screen through the traditional art form ‘tholpavakkuthu’ (Puppet Dance). Usually exhibited at festivals of village temples, ‘tholpavakkuthu’ uses puppets made of leather with flexible joints. These joints are moved using sticks and the shadow of these moving puppets are captured on a screen using a light source from behind, creating dramatic moving images on the screen. Stories from the mythology were told so, with accompanying dialogues and songs with traditional percussions like the Chenda. ‘Tholpavakkuthu’ uses some of the techniques widely used in cinema like the close-ups and long-shots.

Apart from the art of ‘tholpavakkuthu’, which exhibits the nature of cinema, many of the folk arts and classical dance forms like ‘Kuthu’, ‘Koodiyattam’ and ‘Kathakali’ exhibits very high visual qualities in their form. My be this legacy of Kerala’s visual culture lead the filmmakers of Kerala to take up cinema in a different way, rather than mere plain story telling, than anywhere else in India, and the people of Kerala to appreciate them.

Malayalam cinema

Malayalam cinema refers to films made in the Indian state of Kerala in the Malayalam language. It forms a significant component of Indian cinema. Malayalam cinema remains the most popular medium of entertainment of the people of Kerala. The most successful movies at the box office are often remade in other Indian languages.

History of Malayalam Cinema

Early Era

A lists of film in year order produced in the Malayalam cinema and language from the beginning, 1928-1959:

The Silent Era

The first Malayalam cinema was produced and directed by, J C Daniel, a dentistby profession who didn't had any prior experience with cinema. His film Vigathakumaran was released in 1928, but failed economically. But it is notable that while mythological films ruled all over the Indian cinema arena, J C Daniel had the courage to produce the first ever Malayalam film with a social theme. The economic failure of Vigathakumaran discouraged him from producing further films.

The ill luck of Malayalam cinema continued. The second film Marthandavarma based on a novel of the same name by C V Raman Pillai, was produced by Sunderraj in 1933. But due to a legal confrontation regarding the rights of the film, the producer had to withdraw the film from cinema halls after few exhibitions. Had it not been for the legal embargo, the film would have had a great impact on the cinema of South India. By Marthandavarma the history of silent Malayalam cinema too came to an end.

Balan: The First Talkie

Indian cinema had already entered the talkie age even before Marthandavarma was released. Balan, the first Malayalam cinema with a sound track was released in 1938. Produced by Tamilian, T R Sunderam at the Modern Theatres, Balan was directed by Notani. A melodramatic film, with more Tamil influence than Malayalam, Balan featured the struggle of two orphaned children, Balan and his younger sister, oppressed and exploited by their evil stepmother until they are rescued by a kindly lawyer. Even though this film could be considered irrelevant in artistic sense, its economic success created a base to the Malayalam film industry. Followed by the success of Balan, Jnambika was released in 1940. After Prahlada (1941), Kerala had to wait till 1948 for the next film. Nirmala (1948) directed by P J Cheriyan explored the possibility of music and songs in Malayalam cinema. Legendary Malayalam poet, G Shankara Kurup penned the lyrics for this film. Thus song-dance sequences became an essential ingredient for commercial success in Malayalam cinema.

Inspired from an imported film - Life of Christ - Phalke started mentally visualising the images of Indian gods and goddesses. What really obsessed him was the desire to see Indian images on the screen in a purely Swadeshi venture. He fixed up a studio in Dadar Main Road, wrote the scenario, erected the set and started shooting for his first venture Raja Harishchandra in 1912. The first full-length story film of Phalke was completed in 1912 and released at the Coronation cinema on April 21, 1913, for special invitees and members of the Press. The film was widely acclaimed by one and all and proved to be a great success.

It is notable that none of the Malayalam films that came before the independence of India reflected the mood of the struggle for independence and also the film that came after independence and the early 1950s reflected that torrid period of Kerala, where the Communist upspring was taking place changing the entire social climate of the State. Cinema continued to be dramas happening in a totally artificial and alien world.

Jeevithanouka - 1951
(The boat of life)

Jeevithanouka was a turning point for Malayalam cinema. This highly dramatic musical film, which narrated the story of ego clashes in a joint family, was mainly directed towards the women audience. Jeevithanouka was a huge success, and can be considered as the first 'super hit' of Malayalam cinema. Thikkurishi Sukumaran Nair, an actor from the stage, became the first 'superstar' of Malayalam cinema after the success of the film. But this success had also an adverse effect on Malayalam cinema. Films that were produced after Jeevithanouka were made according to this success formula, and nothing creative was seen for a long time. Superstars took over the driver's seat and directors were forced to the background.

Neelakuyil - 1954
(The Blue Cuckoo)

Through Neelakuyil Malayalam cinema for the first time had an authentic Malayalam story. The story for Neelakuyil was penned by renowned Malayalam writer Uroob and directed by the duo of P Bhaskaran and Ramu Karyat. This melodramatic film dealt with the issue of untouchability in the society. Satyan and Miss Kumari were elevated to stardom after the huge success of this film. Malayalam film music till then were cheap imitations of Hindi and Tamil film music, also came up with original Malayalam tunes through this film. The lyrics written by P Bhaskaran were arranged by K Rghavan, influenced by Malayalam folk music, which became popular among the masses. This was also the first Malayalam film to be shot outdoors. Neelakuyil announced the presence of Malayalam cinema in Indian film arena.

Newspaper Boy - 1955

Newspaper Boy (1955) was the reflection of neo-realism in cinema, which became popular all over the world. This film was a result of extreme hard work by a group of college students. Newspaper Boy was directed by P Ramadas, who was totally new to cinema and almost all technical works were handled by amateur students. This film was distributed some months before Satyajith Ray's Pather Panchali came out. This film narrated the sad story of a printing press employee and his family reeling through poverty. He dies of extreme poverty and illness, which forces his children to stop their education. His elder son Appu leaves to Madras in search of a job. Failing to secure a job there, he returns and decides to take up the job of a newspaper boy.

Towards New Sensibilities

Even though Malayalam cinema right from the first talkie, Balan ventured into social themes instead of cosmetic dramas from Hindu Mythology, like anywhere else in India, they stood far away from social realities. While cinema elsewhere in the world, except India, took big leap forward in devising new cinematic forms making cinema an art form by itself, the Indian filmmakers right from the beginning considered cinema as a platform for combining all the art forms available in India. This was the concept about cinema even among the leading film critics then. Malayalam cinema was no exception in this regard. The first International Film Festival of India held in 1952 opened up the window to a new world of cinema to the Indian filmmakers. For the first time they understood that cinema has advanced much further than the make-belief Hollywood films, which were the only source of foreign films then. Films like Bicycle Thief, which was shown for the first time in India compelled a new generation of filmmakers to take a new path of filmmaking. Satyajit Ray’s Pather Panchali triggered the movement, which was taken up by other new generation filmmakers in Northern India.

Malayalam cinema too took a new path during the mid 1950s towards more down-to-earth social realities, rather than cosmetic social dramas. But this change in sensibility was not due to the effect of world cinema on them, as the Malayalee filmmakers were virtually absent at the film festival. Hence, even though Malayalam cinema became more sensible during the mid 1950s, it had to wait till the mid 1970s, till the new breed of FTII trained filmmakers started filmmaking, for Malayalam cinema to become ‘real cinema’.

In fact, it was the powerful movement that happened in Malayalam literature spearheaded by literary giants like Thakazhi Shivashankara Pillai, Viakom Muhammad Basheer and M T Vasudevan Nair and the ‘Library Movement’ which coincided with it became the real factor for this changes in Malayalam cinema. Also the strong presence of playwrights like N Krishna Pillai, C J Thomas, C N Shreekhantan Nair, G Shankara Pillai and K T Muhammad opened up new vistas in the field of stage plays. Dramas of Thoppil Bhasi like Ningalanne Communist Aakki, Survey Kallu and Mudiayanaya Puthran created ripples in the society. Malayalam cinema, which followed these footsteps but couldn’t create its own cinematic form and remained as novels and dramas.

DISTRICT CAME INTO EXISTENCE...

2007-12-13T00:12:00.000+05:30

Kasargod became part of Kerala following the reorganisation of states and
formation of Kerala in November 1,1956.
The district was Kasargod Taluk in Kannur District.

The formation of Kasargod District was a long felt ambition of the people.
It is with the intention of bestowing maximum attention on the
development of backward area, Kasaragod district was formed on 24th May, 1984
as per GO.(MS)No.520/84/RD dated 19.05.1984.

With the formation of the district, comprising the erstwhile Kasargod and Hosdurg Taluks.
It has become possible to develop this area fruitfully.
Kasargod consists of the hill tracts villages in the eastern side and
costal villages in the western side and it is the 14th district in the State.

History Of Kasaragod

2007-12-13T00:04:00.000+05:30

History

Lying on the north western coast of the State, Kasaragod was famous from time immemorial. Many Arab travellers, who came to Kerala between ninth and 14th centuries AD, visited Kasaragod as it was then an important trade centre. They called this area Harkwillia. Barbose, the Portuguese traveller, who visited Kumbla near Kasaragod in 1514, had recorded that rice was exported to Male Island whence coir was imported. Dr. Francis Buccanan, who was the family doctor of Lord Wellesly, visited Kasaragod in 1800. In his travelogue, he has included information on the political and communal set-up in places like Athipramba, Kavvai, Nileswaram, Bekal, Chandragiri and Manjeshwaram.

Kasaragod was part of the Kumbala Kingdom in which there were 64 Tulu and Malayalam villages. When Vijayanagar empire attackedKasaragod, it was ruled by the Kolathiri King who had Nileshwaram as his headquarters. It is said that the characters appearing in Theyyam, the ritualistic folkdance of northern Kerala, represent those who had helped King Kolathiri in the fight against the attack of the Vijayanagar empire. During the decline of that empire in the 14th century, the administration of this area was vested with the Ikkery Naikans. They continued to be the rulers till the fall of the Vijayanagar empire in 16th century. Then Vengappa Naik declared independence to Ikkery. In 1645 Sivappa Naik took the reigns and transferred the capital to Bednoor. Thus they came to be known as Bednoor Naik. Chandragiri and Bekal forts are considered to be parts of a chain of Forts constructed by Sivappa Naik

.In 1763 Hyder Ali of Mysore conquered Bednoor. His intention was to capture entire Kerala. But when his attempt to conquer Thalassery fort was foiled , Hyder Ali returned to Mysore and died there in 1782.His son, Tippu Sulthan, continued the attack and conquered Malabar. As per the Sreerangapattanam Treaty of 1792, Tippu surrendered Malabar except Thulunadu (Canara) to the British. The British got it, only after the death of Tippu Sulthan in 1799

.Kasaragod was part of Bekal taluk in the south Canara district of Bombay presidency. Kasaragod taluk came into being when Bekal taluk was included in the Madras presidency on 16th April 1882. Though Vengayil Kunhiraman Nayanar moved a resolution in 1913 on the floor of Madras Governor's Council demanding the merger of Kasaragod taluk with the Malabar district, it had to be withdrawn because of the stiff opposition of the members from Karnataka. In1927, a political convention held at Kozhikode, passed a resolution stressing the above demand. In the same year, an organisation titled Malayalee Seva Sanghom was constituted. Thanks to the efforts made by many eminent persons like K.P.Kesava Menon, Kasaragod became part of Kerala following the reorganisation of states and formation of Kerala on the first November 1956.

National Movement

Kasaragod played a prominent role in the National Movement for the freedom of the country. Mohammed Sherul Sahib and Kandige Krishna Bhat were the frontline leaders of the independence movement. Umesh Rao, K.M. Krishnan Nambiar, Shreesankarji, Naranthatta Raman Nair, A.C. Kannan Nair, T.Gopalan Nair and Meloth Narayanan Nambiar were prominent freedom fighters.

The agrarian struggle to end the exploitation and oppression by landlords and chieftains were part of the National Movement. The Kadakom Sathyagraha was started following the arrest of Gandhiji in 1932. The Palayi Harvest Agitation (1941), Cheemeni Estate Struggle (1942), Kayyur Agrarian Riot (1944), Eleri Estate Agitation (1946), Karinthalam Paddy Seizure Revolt (1948) and many other struggles waged by the peasant organisations accelerated the tempo of the freedom movement. Besides the agitation of the peasants, the various struggles unleashed for the uplift of the scheduled castes and tribes also supported and enlivened the National Movement.

Kanhangad

2007-12-12T23:47:00.000+05:30

Kanhangad(Malayalam: കാഞ്ഞങ്ങാട്) is a city and a municipality in Kasaragod district in the Indian state of Kerala. It is 28km from the district headquarters of Kasargod. Kanhangad is also known as the Commercial Hub of Kasaragod district.

Kanhangad Town

Hosdurg (Hosa Durga in Kannada and Puthiya Kotta in Malayalam, meaning New Fort), half a kilometer south of the town center Kottachery, hosts the Municipal office, other administrative offices, the police station, the civil court and the government hospital.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, Kanhangad had a population of 65,499. Males constitute 48% of the population and females 52%. Kanhangad has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 83%, and female literacy is 74%. In Kanhangad, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age. Most widely spoken language is Malayalam.

Tourism

A prominent feature that attracts the attention of travelers in Kanhangad town center is a tall minaret, a contribution from the wealthy merchants of the town who are predominantly Muslim.

Anandashram (5 km from Kanhangad) is an internationally renowned spiritual center founded by Swami Ramdas in 1939. It offers a quiet, peaceful ambiance best suited for meditation and spiritual studies.
Hosdurg Fort (half a kilometre south of Kanhangad) is renowned for its chain of forts built by Somashekara Nayak of Keladi Nayaka dynasty of Ikkeri.
Nithyanandashram is a spiritual center near Hosdurg Fort.
Karpooreshwara Temple, built there in 1963, was constructed after the style and design of the famous Somnatha Temple in Gujarat. A full size statue of Swami Nityananda in sitting posture made of pancha-loha is one of the attractions of the ashram.
Bekal Fort is a 300-year old fort, which is one of the largest and best preserved forts in Kerala lies 10 km north of Kanhangad. With its admirable beaches, it has become the focal point for the development of tourism in north Kerala. The Bekal Fort is the biggest fort in Kerala. A controversy exists regarding the origin of the fort. Some argue that the fort was built by Ikkeri Nayakas.

In the book History of Bekal written by Nandakumar Koroth gives credit to all the rulers who ruled the tract of land from the 15th century. The solid construction resembles the one at Kannur St.Angelo fort built by Portuguese.
Adot Vana durga Temple, Bellikoth where the Sahashrachandika Yaagam was conducted for the prosperity of the people living all over the world.
Ranipuram is a small place in Kasargod district of Kerala state, south India. This place was formerly known as Madathumalauntil 1970s. About 48 km east of Kanhangad on the panathoor road branching off at panathady. Lying 1016 m (Google earth) above sea level adjacent to Bhagamandala forest range.

Schools and Colleges

Little Flower Higher Secondary School
Durga Higher Secondary School,Hosdurg
Christ C.M.I public school,Mavungal
Government High School Hosdurg
Iqbal Higher Secondary School
Chinmaya Vidyalaya Kanhangad
Jamaath Higher Secondary School, Centre Chithari
Govt. U.P. School, Melangot
Govt Higher Secondary School, Pallikara
Govt Higher Secondary School, Periya
Crescent English medium school, ajanoor
GHS Balla East,Chemmattamvayal

=GVHS Kottappuram,Nileshwar Institutions for higher education include Nehru Arts & Science College, Agricultural College and Swamy Nithyananda Polytechnic.And many more private institutions. One of the Private Paramedical Institution among them is

Personalities

Kanhangad has been the home town of many great personalities such as
Maha Kavi P. Kunhiraman Nair-famous poet ,
Sri. K. Madhavan-Veteran Communist leader,
Vidwan P. Kelu Nair-Author/Freedom Fighter,
C.M.Padmanabhan Nair-Leader of socialist party and so forth.

Nileshwaram

2007-12-12T23:28:00.000+05:30

Nileshwaram/Neeleshwaram(Malayalam:നീലേശ്വരം), also known as Nileshwar, is a town in the Kasaragode District of Kerala state, south India, with an area of 14.14 km² and population of 22,661 (1991 census)popularly known as Cultural capital of Kasargod.

Arts and Culture

Nileshwar is the cultural capital of Kasaragod district. There are a large number of socio -cultural organizations across the length and breadth of the town. The place is also famous for its communal harmony. In the realm of cultural and social activities here lived several eminent leaders . Several activists from Nileshwar participated in the freedom struggle , movement against Endo-sulphan , anti-liquor campaign etc. The new generation helps Nileshwar to stand proudly in Kasaragod district as its cultural capital. The calmness and beauty of Nileshwar is incomparable. Arts Forms It is famous for its folk arts, temple festivals, palace, sacred grooves, old markets, and weaver street. Famous festival in Nileshwar is Pooram and Kalasam in Mannampurathukavu and festival in Thaliyil temple. Porat (ശാലീയ പൊറാട്ട്), in Anjoottabalam Veerarkavu and the Pooram festival in Cheermakkavu attracts thousands of people in the month of Meenam. The temple premises are filled with red cloth as the devotees present to the goddess in gratitude and also for curing severe diseases like chicken-pox. The famous artists who lived here and spread the name of the town include Kanayi Kunhiraman,Kavya Madhavan and Sri.Krishnan Anjoottan. The Theyyam festival performed in several kavus, tharavads and 'temples'[ not the right term to call as temple]invite the attention of large number of foreigners. The festivities start from Thulam-10 [Theyyam in Anjoottambalam] and continue till Idavam. In Nileshwar alone Theyyam in different forms performed like Padinhare Chamundi, Moovalamkuzhi Chamundi, Kundor Chamundi, Raktha Chamundi, Vishnumoorthi, Palot Bhagavathi, Muchilot Bhagavathi, Vairajathan, Vairavan, several Bhagavathis, and Gulikans.

Kolkali,poorakkali, alamikali etc

Kolkali in praise of gods performed by the nayars of kizakkan kozuval from the biginning of the 19th century. Poorakkali performed by the kazhakams in nileshwar and produced eminent panikkers like Maicha Govindan. In the month of march poorakkali was performed in a competituion basis and known as marathukali.Alamikali performed in connection with the Porat in memory of the art form performed near manthop maidan in the past.

Naming Nileshwaram

The name "Nileshwaram" derives from "Neelakandeswaran" means Lord Siva, the deity of the Thaliyil temple. There is another folklore that the place was named so after Sage Neela who installed the deity of Lord Siva thousands of years ago. The name Nileshwaram derives from Neelichutta Idam[now called as Karuvacherry]Nileshwar lies between two rivers, Nileshwaram river and Karyangodu river. To the west is the Arabian Sea

Tourism

The Thekke Kovilakam, Kinavoor Kovilakam, Kovilakam Chira, Tali Temple etc. associated with the Nileshwar Raja family attracts thousands of tourists from different corners of the world.

Mannampurathu Kavu[Chadayamangalam Baghavathi Temple] filled with trees in the centre of the town becomes wonder to the tourists. The temples history is related to Mannan , a notorious figure, and his assassination by Mannampurath Baghavathi. The temple also tells us the story of the migration of Nair families to Nileshwar from the South. The Nairs of Eruvatt, Aramana, Anikkil and Koroth families escorted Mannampurath Bhagavathi to Nileshwar as per the story of the temple. Then they invited a priestly class[non-vegitarian] to do the rituals of the temple. During the Pooram festival large number of devotees came to the temble and worship the 'Thidamp' and got the blessings of Kavilamma and 'Eruvattachan' and 'Mailittachan'. The 'Kavilachans' with 'Olakkudas' express the divinity assured to them. Valia Pramba island is near Nileshwar. It is a thin strip of land which has sea on one side and the river on the other side. There are boat services from Nileshwar to Valiya Paramba.

Bakel Fort, a famous tourist destination, is 14 km to the North.