Atrocities on Kodavas across centuries

Many incidents of  Atrocities on Kodavas are found and documented across centuries in Kodagu .A few of them are listed as ready reference here

• Contents

  Devati Parambu 

• Madikeri Fort 1807-1808

• Tippus Atrocities on Okkas

  • Ammanda

    • The Ammanda okka were traditionally the thakkas (custodians) of the ancient Povvadi temple located at Kaḍanga-Murūr near their ancestral house. During the campaigns of Tipu Sultan in Kodagu in the late eighteenth century, this old temple was destroyed by the invading forces. The event is remembered in clan tradition as a period of upheaval when several sacred and community structures in Kodagu were damaged or lost. Despite this destruction, the Ammanda okka continued their lineage in the region and preserved the memory of their traditional role associated with the temple.

  • Kulletira Okka 

    • Brothers Kulletira Manicha and Kulletira Ponnanna, sons of Kulletira Kalacha Nayaka, were renowned warriors serving the Kodagu ruler Dodda Veera Rajendra during the conflicts with Tipu Sultan. Ponnanna led Kodava fighters who protected the Kodagu Raja while he was in hiding, defeated Tipu’s forces at Bychanahalli near Kushalnagar, and captured the fort’s Qilledar. He also helped recover forts such as Bhagamandala and Madikeri from Mysore control. In recognition of his bravery, the Raja commemorated the victory with a memorial stone known as Kullati Ponnanna Kallu.

  • Achanda Okka

    • During the campaigns of Tipu Sultan in Kodagu during the late eighteenth century, members of the Achanda clan were among the Kodavas affected by the Mysore military campaigns. Clan accounts recall that several families were captured or forced to flee their homes when Kodava resistance was suppressed. Some members were reportedly deported to Srirangapatna along with other Kodava captives. After the fall of Tipu Sultan in 1799, the Achanda clan gradually returned to its ancestral lands and continued its lineage from its traditional ainmane.

  • Ajjinikanda Okka

    •  During the Mysore campaigns in Kodagu, members of the Ajjinikanda clan experienced the upheavals that affected many Kodava families under the rule of Tipu Sultan. Historical references and clan narratives suggest that some members were captured and taken to Mysore territories as prisoners following the suppression of Kodava revolts. Others fled into the forests and hills of Kodagu to escape the advancing forces. After the fall of Tipu Sultan in 1799, the Ajjinikanda clan re-established itself in Kodagu and continued its ancestral traditions

  • Maletira Okka

    •  Members of the Maletira clan were among the Kodavas who faced severe disruptions during the Mysore campaigns of the eighteenth century. Oral accounts within the community state that families from the clan were taken prisoner and transported to Srirangapatna during the deportations that followed the Mysore army’s suppression of Kodava resistance. Their lands were reportedly occupied temporarily during this period. After Mysore rule ended in 1799, the Maletira clan returned and re-established its presence in Kodagu

  • Ammaṇichanḍa

    • An ancestor of the Ammaṇichanḍa okka, Ammaṇichanḍa Chengappa, was honoured for his bravery in the wars against Tipu Sultan. In recognition of his service, the Kodagu ruler Dodda Veera Rajendra granted him a jahagir in 1818 consisting of about 12 acres of wetland and 24 acres of bane land. The land was later shared among members of the okka. Chengappa was also presented with a long sword bearing the royal seal, which remains preserved by members of the clan, along with a pair of solid gold bangles given as marks of honour.

  • Kuttanḍa

    • The Kuttanḍa okka consists of five bhagas, with two branches in Kuklur, two in Ammathi Karmad, and one in Kavadi. Earlier, when the two Kuklur branches were united, the clan had a balyamane situated on the Malethirike hill near Virajpet, an area shared by the villages of Kuklur, Aimangala, Chembebeliyur, Maggula, and Vypada. During the invasions of Kodagu by the army of Tipu Sultan, the Kuttanḍa okka moved from this hill settlement along with the Monnanda okka and established a new ainmane in Kuklur, which later came to belong to the branch known as Kuttanḍa–1. In later years, disagreements within the family led one ancestor to establish a separate ainmane, forming the branch now known as Kuttanḍa–2. Although the two branches maintain separate ancestral houses, they share a common thutengala and continue to celebrate traditional ceremonies such as Karanangkodpa and Puthari together, reflecting their shared lineage.

  • Balyanḍa

    • The first ainmane of the Balyanḍa okka was originally a mundh mane (traditional ancestral house). During the invasions of Kodagu by the army of Tipu Sultan, the house was set on fire by the soldiers, leading to its destruction. In the years that followed, the clan rebuilt their dwelling as a small thatched structure made of bamboo without a verandah. Over time, as stability returned to Kodagu, the okka constructed a more permanent ainmane in 1946, symbolizing the revival and continuity of the clan.

  • Mēkathanḍa

    • During the invasions of Kodagu by the forces of Tipu Sultan, the men of the Mēkathanḍa okka were reportedly killed after being invited for peace talks. At that time, one expectant woman of the clan was staying at her maternal home (Kodimaniyanda thamane). She later gave birth to a son who became the only surviving male descendant of the okka. Because there were no men left to cultivate the clan’s lands, the Kodagu Raja later settled Konkani families on part of their property.

  • Còdanḍa

    • The ancestral history of the Còdanḍa okka traces back to an earlier residence at Thomara (now called Thora near Peggala), where their ancestor Uthu Nayaka lived in what was known as an alakkadi kote or wooden fort. During the period of raids by Tipu Sultan, the rulers of Kodagu reportedly used this fortified house as a place of refuge. Over time the original structure declined, and the present ainmane represents a later phase of the clan’s settlement. Parts of the old structure are said to survive in Thora, though the property later passed into the possession of another family after a legal dispute

  • Kunchettira

    • A tragic episode remembered in the history of the Kunchettira okka occurred during the invasions of Kodagu by the army of Tipu Sultan. The clan’s karanava, Uthayya, was killed by the invading soldiers. His wife, who belonged to the Kaliyanda clan and was six months pregnant at the time, narrowly escaped capture by hiding in a jaggery basket. She was later given refuge in the house of the Thelappanda okka, where she gave birth to a son. This child continued the Kunchettira lineage, preserving the clan despite the devastating losses during that period.

  • Cheeyanḍira

    • The original ainmane of the Cheeyanḍira okka was a mund mane that was destroyed by the soldiers of Tipu Sultan during the Mysore campaigns in Kodagu. Clan accounts record that sixteen young men of the okka were captured during this period. One of them managed to escape and fled to Arekad, where he later established a separate branch of the clan with about six hundred bhattis of wetland. His descendants, known today as Cheeyanḍira–2 and now settled in Hoskeri and Margod, belong to the same lineage but no longer maintain a connection with the original ainmane. The present ancestral house of the Cheeyanḍira okka was built later, probably in the nineteenth century, after the earlier structure had been destroyed.

  • Battiyanḍa

    • Clan history records a tragic event during the campaigns of Tipu Sultan in Kodagu when the men of the Battiyanḍa okka were reportedly killed by the invading army. Only two sisters of the clan survived this calamity. One of them was married in the kuthik nindath tradition to a member of the Bepadiyanda okka, which helped revive and continue the Battiyanḍa lineage. The other sister married into the Cheyyanda okka and settled in Cheyyandane, a place named after the Cheyyanda clan who were among its earliest settlers. Because of this historical connection, intermarriage between the Battiyanḍa and Cheyyanda okkas is traditionally avoided

  • Bōvērianḍa

    • The early ainmane of the Bōvērianḍa okka was located at Naduvenkott and was originally built about five centuries ago by their ancestor Karanava Beeracha. Later, Beeracha’s son Poonacha built another ainmane at Thirike Kandi after the family moved from the earlier site associated with the Vishnu-murthi shrine. During the military campaigns of Tipu Sultan in Kodagu, this second ancestral house, which was a mund mane, was burned down by the invading soldiers. The present ainmane is the third structure built by the clan and represents the continuation of the Bōvērianḍa lineage despite the destruction during the Mysore invasions.

  • Monnanda

    • The Monnanda okka originally lived in an ancestral ainmane on the slopes of the Malethirike hill near Virajpet. When the army of Tipu Sultan attacked this settlement, the ancestral house was destroyed and nearly all members of the clan were killed. Clan tradition records that even infants in cradles were among those who perished. Only one elderly man managed to escape and later rebuilt the lineage by establishing a new ainmane in Kuklur.

  • Arapattu Mukkātira

    • During the Mysore campaigns in Kodagu, one ancestor of the Arapattu Mukkātira okka was captured and taken prisoner by the forces of Tipu Sultan. This event forms part of the clan’s historical memory of the upheavals faced by Kodava families during the period of Mysore rule.

  • Pākēri Mukkātira

    • During the period when the army of Tipu Sultan advanced through Kodagu, the temple associated with the Pākēri Mukkātira okka was threatened with attack. In order to protect the sacred objects, the temple priests buried the jewellery and idols of the shrine before the soldiers arrived. These sacred items were rediscovered many years later when land in the area was being levelled.

  • Naḍikērianḍa

    • During the invasions of Kodagu by Tipu Sultan, some ancestors of the Naḍikērianḍa okka were captured and taken away. According to clan tradition, these individuals were later converted to Islam but eventually escaped and returned to Kodagu. However, they were not readmitted into the okka because there were no traditional rituals that permitted their reintegration into the clan.

  • Nālēyanḍa

    • Many members of the Nālēyanḍa okka were captured and taken away during the campaigns of Tipu Sultan, and little information is known about their fate. Only a few members of the clan survived. The decline in the number of male descendants later led the okka to revive its lineage through adoption. Clan tradition also records that an old Vishnu temple associated with the okka was destroyed during this period.

  • Pānḍanḍa

    • During the mass deportations carried out by the forces of Tipu Sultan, the men of the Pānḍanḍa okka were taken away to Srirangapatna and reportedly converted to Islam. Only one pregnant woman of the clan remained in Kodagu. Through a marriage arranged later according to the mannk nindiya custom, the lineage of the Pānḍanḍa okka was eventually revived by her descendants.

  • Pattaḍa

    • During the invasions of Kodagu by the forces of Tipu Sultan, soldiers reportedly destroyed a temple located on land later associated with the Pattaḍa okka and killed members of the Brahmin family living there. According to clan tradition, only one girl survived the attack. She was later married through the mannk nindiya custom by a member of the Achappanḍa okka who had acquired the land, and the new lineage came to be known as the Pattaḍa okka.

  • Pattamāḍa

    • During the campaigns of Tipu Sultan in Kodagu, Bhagamandala was attacked and the temple priests fled the area. A member of the Pattamāḍa okka from Chirmangala gave refuge to a young Brahmin boy and helped ensure that the daily worship at the temples of Bhagamandala and Talakaveri continued. In the same period, members of neighbouring clans such as the Bachettira and Maletira of Bengur were captured and taken to Srirangapatna by Tipu’s soldiers. Later, the Kodagu Raja granted land in Bengur to the Pattamāḍa okka in recognition of Pattamāḍa Appanna, who died fighting in the wars against Tipu.

  • Pēriyanḍa

    • During the invasions of Kodagu by Tipu Sultan, members of the Pēriyanḍa family were reportedly captured or killed, and their ancestral settlement suffered severe destruction. In the same period, a nearby stone shrine dedicated to Uppgunḍi Lavaṇēshwara was destroyed by Tipu’s forces. The shrine, where the sage Lavaṇēshwara is believed to have performed penance, was dismantled and its uthsava murthi was said to have been thrown into the river. The remains of the shrine and the Shiva linga are still visible today amid forest growth.