Lakshmy Pilla (14 February 1820 – 13 February 1904), better identified as Kutti Kunju Thankachi, was an Indian composer and writer of Malayalam literature, known to be the first female poet and composer of Kerala. The daughter of Irayimman Thampi, the noted composer of '' Omanathinkal Kidavo'' and a musician at the court of Swathi Thirunal, she was the author of a number of attakathas such as ''Parvathiswayamvaram'' and ''Mithrasahamoksham''. ''Sreemathy Swayamvaram'' and a play, ''Ajnathavasam''.

Biography

Kutti Kunju Thankachi, née Lakshmy Pilla, was born on 14 February 1820 at

Vilavancode taluk Vilavancode taluk is a taluk located in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India. The headquarters of the taluk is the town of Vilavancode. The taluk was among several in Thiruvananthapuram district that with the passage of the States Reorganisati ...

of the

Travancore state 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 ...

, presently in

Kanyakumari district Kanniyakumari district is one of the 38 districts in Tamil Nadu state and the southernmost district in mainland India. It stands second in terms of population density among the districts of Tamil Nadu. It is also the richest district in Tamil Nad ...

of the south Indian state of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

, to Irayimman Thampi and Kalipilla Thankachi. Her early education was under her father; she studied under Harippadu Kochuppilla Varrier, simultaneously learning Thiruvathira dance from her father. Her first marriage was in 1834 to Kunjan Thampan of

Cherthala Cherthala, , (formerly Shertalai, Shertallai or Shertallay) is a Municipal town and a Taluk located at National highway 66 in the district of Alappuzha, in the state of Kerala, India. Cherthala is the satellite town and industrial hub of Ala ...

Varanadu Naduvilel Kovilakam but after the death of Thampan in 1851, she married again in 1861; the marriage with Kunjunni Thampan lasting a decade until his death in 1871. She had eight children, from her two marriages. She was afflicted with eye disease from her childhood, lost her eye sight completely by 1902 and died on 13 February 1904, at the age of 83.

Legacy

Thankachi, known to be the first woman poet and composer of Kerala, wrote eighteen books comprising three attakathas, ''Parvathiswayamvaram'', ''Mithrasahamoksham'' and ''Sreemathy Swayamvaram'', several poems, two ''kurathi'' songs, a thullal and a play, ''Ajnathavasam''. Noted critic,

S. Gupthan Nair S. Guptan Nair (1919 – 2006) was an Indian scholar, academic, critic and writer of Malayalam literature. Known for his literary works as well as for his oratorical skills, Nair was a prolific writer with over 35 books to his credit. He was a ...

, has stated that Thankachi had gained popularity as a poet during her time itself and people used to visit her to read their poems to listen to her opinions. She was known to have good knowledge of

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

and she composed songs in several ragas such as Kambhoji, Kalyaani, Naatta,

Khamas Khamas ( fa, خماس, also Romanized as Khamās and Khammās) is a village in Shoaybiyeh-ye Gharbi Rural District, Shadravan District, Shushtar County, Khuzestan Province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and ...

and Surutti.

Literary contributions

Musical compositions

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thankachi, Kutti Kunju 1820 births 1904 deaths Writers from Kerala 19th-century Indian poets People from Kanyakumari district Women writers (early modern) Indian women composers Indian women poets Indian women dramatists and playwrights