Chendrimada okka

Contents

1 About the okka
2 Moolapurusha
3 Ainmane
4 Eminent people

About the okka

The ancestors of Chendrimada okka tapped toddy with the Kuḍiyas. Hence their okka was called ‘those who tap sendi /chendi, Chendimsḍa / Chendrimaḍa’. Their ancestors might have been Kuḍiyas and the original ainmane in Appangaḷa was called Chendi mane.

Another version of the story is their karaṇava Madayya was fond of sendi (toddy) and his nick-name was Sendi Mada. So his okka was called Sendi Madanda which became Chendrimaḍa over time.

Their original ainmane called ‘Chendi mane’ was in Appangaḷa. The Chendrimaḍa okka could not stand the trouble caused by Hyder Ali’s soldiers in Appangaḷa. So their ancestor came away to Nangala with his wife, and a few valuables loaded on an ox, and built a mund mane around a well. When that burnt down, this ainmane was built.

One of the Chendrimaḍamen, who was taken away by Tipu to Srirangapatna and converted to Islam, left his Muslim wife there and came back to this ainmane, after Tipu died.

Long ago two ajjas left this ainmané in anger – muri keethith, after a quarrel. They started two branches called pudiya mané and koppath mané. There are thus three bhagas in this okka, balya mane (whose members have this ainmane), pudiya mane and koppath mane. The latter two branches are small in number.They have no ainmanes and do not come to this ainmane for any festival or ceremony. Pudiya mane have built their own Kaimaḍa.

Another story says that their ancestors were three brothers Madayya (eldest), Kushalappa and Ganapathy, who were good soldiers. The Raja rewarded them with gold and silver for their bravery in the first katakayi in Thuḷunaḍ. The brothers loaded the gold and silver on the backs of oxen and set off from Maḍikeri looking for a place to settle. When they reached Nangala, they were pleased with the land and the abundance of toddy palms there because of their fondness for toddy. So they built a thatched house here on top of the deep pit in which they buried the gold and silver – it is believed that this was about 400 years ago.