Kallumala Samaram (Stone Necklace Protest) is an agitation or social revolution by

Pulayar The Pulayar (also Pulaya, Pulayas, Cherumar, Cheramar, and Cheraman) is a caste group mostly found in the southern part of India, forming one of the main social groups in modern-day Kerala, Karnataka and historically in Tamil Nadu. Tradition ...

community that took place at

Perinad Perinad is a village in Kollam district in the state of Kerala, India. India census, Perinad had a population of 32,864 with 16,032 males and 16,832 females. Perinad is a fast-growing village at the outskirts of Kollam city. National Highway ...

and nearby villages such as Cherumoodu,

Kanjavely Kanjavely is a village in the Thrikkaruva panchayat of Kollam district in Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combi ...

etc. in,

Kollam district Kollam district (), (formerly Quilon district) is one of 14 districts of the state of Kerala, India. The district has a cross-section of Kerala's natural attributes; it is endowed with a long coastline, a major Laccadive Sea seaport and an in ...

on 24 October 1915. The agitation is also known as

Lahala or

Mutiny. It enjoy a significant position in Kerala history.

History

The agitation was a sudden uprising against the upper class's dictum to the minority castes to not use the public road, wear good dresses, use umbrella, denying the right to education, prohibiting entry to temples, denying day off from labor and denying women to wear gold or metal ornaments. There was a ''naattukoottam'' organised to discuss these issues but the landlord class predominantly

Nair The Nair , also known as Nayar, are a group of Indian Hindu castes, described by anthropologist Kathleen Gough as "not a unitary group but a named category of castes". The Nair include several castes and many subdivisions, not all of whom histor ...

caste members rejected the proposals from Pulayas.The agitation intensified following this and the lower caste communities decided to convene a large meeting at Plavilapurayidom, Cherumoodu, near

on 24 October 1915. On the day of meeting a group of nair landlords under leadership of Koori Maathu and Kannan Pillai attacked and injured many who have gathered at the meeting place. There was violent clashes between both the groups and arson ensuing this incident. At the end by December a meeting was convened under the chair of

Ayyankali Ayyankali (28 August 1863 – 18 June 1941) was an Indian politician, prominent social reformer, educator, economist, lawmaker, and a revolutionary leader. He worked for the advancement of the oppressed people in the princely state of Travancor ...

Changanassery Parameswaran Pillai Changanassery Parameswaran Pillai (March 1877 – 30 June 1940) popularly Changanassery, was a social reformer, lawyer, judge, attorney general and the former president of the Nair Service Society. He was elected four times to the Sree Moolam Po ...

and British officials on 21 December 1915 at

Peeranki Maidan Cantonment Maidan or Peeranki Maidan or Peeringee Maidan is a historical ground in the eastern portion of Old Quilon town, near S.N College, in Kerala, India. It is closely associated with the social and political history of Kerala. It hosts the ...

bringing together both the conflicting groups. In this meeting women belonging to Pulaya community threw away the ''Kallumala'' (ornaments made out of stone and woods) and proclaimed that they will only use gold or metal ornaments. Kallumala's were chains of beads worn by their ladies as a symbol of slavery and inferior caste status. Through this agitation the oppressed class fought the caste elites by breaking their chains to win the right to wear ornaments. During pre-independence era women from lower castes in Kerala faced severe unfathomable oppression. There were strict diktats regarding dress codes and ornaments and there was even taxes to be paid to erstwhile

Travancore The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...

kings for covering their breasts. Once the agitation was over there were lot of cases and counter cases that were filed before the magistrate. It was a renowned advocate named Elanjikkal John Vakil who represented the cases for dalits. In lieu of the lawyer's fees, he asked the accused to contribute labour to build a pond for public use at Kollam. This pond named Kamman kulam still exist near the Kollam district panchayath office, Thevally.

References

{{Reflist History of Kollam district Caste system in India 1915 in India People from Kollam district

History

See also

References