Sree Padmanabhadasa Sree Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma (born 1949) is the current

titular Titular may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Title character in a narrative work, the character referred to in its title Religion * Titular (Catholicism), a cardinal who holds a titulus, one of the main churches of Rome ** Titular bisho ...

Maharajah of Travancore The Maharaja of Travancore was the principal title of the ruler of the Travancore, Kingdom of Travancore in the southern part of Kerala, India. The Maharaja of Travancore was the topmost ruler of Travancore until 1949, when Travancore was annex ...

. He is the youngest of the four children of the former titular Maharani of

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 ...

, Sree Padmanabhasevini Maharani Karthika Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi and her husband, Prince Consort Lt. Col.

G. V. Raja Lt. Col. P. R. Godavarma Raja (13 October 1908 – 30 April 1971), often referred to as G. V. Raja, was an Indian sports and tourism promoter and administrator, pilot, sportsman and Sanskrit scholar . He took special care in inspiring the youth ...

of Poonjar Royal House. Rama Varma is the only nephew of the last reigning

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

, Sree

Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma Sree Padmanabhadasa Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma , popularly known as Sree Chithira Thirunal, was the last ruling Maharaja of the Princely State of Travancore, in southern India until 1949 and later the Titular Maharajah of Travancore ...

and succeeded the late titular

Maharaja of Travancore The Maharaja of Travancore was the principal title of the ruler of the Kingdom of Travancore in the southern part of Kerala, India. The Maharaja of Travancore was the topmost ruler of Travancore until 1949, when Travancore was annexed into Indi ...

, Sree Padmanabhadasa Sree

Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma Sree Padmanabhadasa Sree Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma (22 March 1922 – 16 December 2013) was the titular Maharaja of Travancore. He was the younger brother of the last ruling monarch of the Kingdom of Travancore, Maharajah Chithira Thiru ...

. He is the managing director of the family owned spice trading company, ''Aspinwall Ltd''. As the head of the royal family, he along with his consort, moved to

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

in 2013 and has settled down at Kowdiar Palace, in order to keep up with the ritual duties of being the custodian of the Sree

Padmanabhaswamy Temple The Shree Padmanabhaswamy Temple is a Hindu temple located in Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of the state of Kerala, India. The name of the city of 'Thiruvananthapuram' in Tamil and Malayalam translates to "The City of Lord Ananta" (The City ...

Early life

Rama Varma is the youngest son of Maharani Karthika Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore and her husband, Prince Consort Lt. Col.

, and was born on 12 June 1949 in Thiru-Kochi. His siblings are the late Crown Prince (Elayarajah) Sree Padmanabhadasa Sree Avittom Thirunal Rama Varma (died at the age of 6 due to rheumatic heart disease, long before he was born), Princess Pooyam Thirunal Gowri Parvathi Bayi and the writer, Princess

Aswathi Thirunal Gowri Lakshmi Bayi Aswathy Thirunal Gowri Lakshmi Bayi (born 1945) of the Travancore Royal Family is a noted writer from Kerala. She has ten books to her credit. Aswathy Thirunal is the niece of the last King of Travancore, Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma. Bir ...

. Like his father, Lt. Col. G. V. Raja, Rama Varma is also an avid sports and book lover. He was educated privately by selected tutors in various subjects. He later graduated from

Mar Ivanios Geevarghese Ivanios (born 21 September 1882 as Geevarghese Panickeruveetil - died 15 July 1953) was the first metropolitan archbishop of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church and Major Archdiocese of Trivandrum. He was the founder of Bethany Ashr ...

College, Thiruvananthapuram, with Physics as his selective subject. Then he moved to Kolkata and worked there for some years. He then went to England to learn business management and worked there for an year.

Later life and marriage

After finishing his higher education and working in England, Rama Varma returned to India in 1972 and, at his uncles' advise, joined the spice trading company Aspinwall Ltd in Mangalore. Rama Varma served as a consultant and in various executive positions like, Additional Director (2004–2005), Director of Planning (2005–2007), Executive Director Aspinwall & Co Travancore Ltd (since 2005), Member of Aspinwall Promoter Group (since 2005), managing director of Aspinwall and Co Ltd in Mangalore (since 2008). In 2002 he married

Ammachi Panapillai Amma Ammachi Panapillai Amma was the title held by the consort of the ruling Maharajah of Travancore as well as those of other title-holding male members of the Travancore Royal Family.Travancore State Manual Vol ii 1940 by TK Velu Pillai and TSM Vol I ...

Srimathi Girija Thankachi of Vazhuthacadu, alias Dr. Girija Rama Varma, former

radiologist Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiatio ...

based in London. After their 2002 wedding the couple lived in

Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...

until 2013. After Rama Varma assumed the Titular Maharajah's position (due to his maternal uncle's death), they moved to

Kowdiar Kowdiar is one of the main localities in the city of Trivandrum, Kerala, India. It is one of the most expensive and cleanest localities in Trivandrum. It is the starting point of the Rajapatha (Royal Path) that stretches to the East Fort. It lie ...

, Trivandrum. He is childless. According to an insider's account, as the current Maharaja is without issue and according to the matrilineal rules of descent in the family, the next in line of succession would be his nephews, the sons of the princesses of Travancore. Therefore, Maharaja Mulam Thirunal Ramavarma's nephews Prince Ravi, Prince Raghu and Prince Aditya are expected to be the successors from the Trivandrum branch of the family. Prince Balagopala and Prince Jay are the Elaya Rajas from the Bangalore line of the family

Titular Maharajah of Travancore

Rama Varma became the ''Elayarajah of Travancore'' when Maharajah Sree

died on 20 July 1991. And when Sree

died on 16 December 2013, he became the ''Titular Maharajah of Travancore''. He was appointed after a function called ''Thirumudikalasam'', as the head of the Travancore Royal Family on 3 January 2014, was held at Kalasamandapam near the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. After rituals and traditional procedures, Tharananalloor Parameswaran Namboodiripad, the temple Tantri (high priest), poured 'punyajalam' (holy water) over Rama Varma, making him the new head of the royal family. The anointment function was a very private affair and only the closest family members and priests took part in it. Rama Varma, as of now, is also the supreme guardian or custodian of Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Thiruvananthapuram. After his installation, he arrived at the Kulasekhara Mandapam of the temple where the

Ettara Yogam The ''Ettara Yogam'' or the King and Council of Eight has been the administrative setup of Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Thiruvanthapuram, Kerala, India, for centuries. Origin According to historians, a six member Sabha was constituted to run ...

presided over by the Pushpanjali Swamiyar held a meeting. The Yogam recognised Rama Varma as ''Chirava Mooppan'' and ''Thrippappoor Mooppan'', and the Swamiyar signed on the ''neettu''. His full title is : His Highness Sree Padmanabha Dasa Vanchipala Sree Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma, Kulasekhara Kiritapati Manney, Maharajah of Travancore.

References

External links

H.H Sree Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma Reflections Lakshadeepam 2014 Youtube.com

Moolam Thirunal anointed head of Travancore royal house Youtube.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Varma, Moolam Thirunal Rama 1949 births Living people Maharajas of Travancore

Early life

Later life and marriage

Titular Maharajah of Travancore

See also

References

External links