[This excerpt is from a book written by Madhavan Purachery about the memories of his father and mother, members of the Malayala brahmin community who were witnesses to and participants in the tumultous social change in northern Malabar in the early 20th century, titled Ammayute Ormappustakam (Mother’s Book of Memories) (Mathrubhumi Books, Kozhikode, 2022). The recollections included in this book are also of little-known and little-discussed presences in the Malayala brahmin homes. Malayala Brahmins or the Nambudiris as they are known now, were the most powerful groups in early 20th century Kerala, occupying the apex of the caste order and owning large properties, but the plight of the women in these groups was extraordinarily bleak. Malayala brahmin were subject to very strict restrictions and were expected to remain unseen by anyone other than immediate relatives and any breach of this, punished by the harshest penalties. The undervaluing of women was rampant and any straying from strict submission could result in ejection from the caste community through a total severance of kin ties and social death.
Continue reading “The Serving Women of a North Malabar Brahmin Illam”
Swatantryavaadini 