Unniyarcha

Unniyarcha (or sometimes spelled Unniarcha) is a popular legendary woman warrior mentioned in the Vadakkan Pattukal, the old ballads of north Malabar.1 She is a popular character in Keralan folklore. She is believed to have lived in northern part of Kerala, India during 16th century.2 History According to the folklore, Attummanammel Unniyarcha is from the famous Puthooram Veedu a Chekavar (Thiyya) family of Malabar. She is the sister of Aromal Chekavar and Unnikannan (another legendary warrior). She is trained in the arts of the kalari, and is an expert at wielding the urumi, a flexible sword used in kalaripayat. She saves the women of her village from being forcibly kidnapped by the rival community.3 Unniyarcha spurns Chanthu (or Chandu) Chekavar's love for her, which leads to the murder of her brother Aromal by Chanthu. Later, Aromalunni, the son of Unniyarcha, takes the revenge against Chanthu.4 Unniyarcha is praised for her bravery and beauty in Vadakkan Pattukal. She is considered as a heroine and symbol of female ability in Malayalee woman. The songs and chronicles have to this day kept the legend alive. The legend of Unniyarcha has been made into the films such as Unniyarcha (1961), starring Prem Nazir and Ragini, Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha (1989), and Puthooramputhri Unniyarcha (2002). A recent claim by writer Manantheri Bhaskaran who claims to be Unniyarcha's relative (4th generation grandson of Unniyarcha's brother) that she was a contemporary of Tipu Sultan (1750 - 1799) and in fact Tipu had captured her in war and taken her to Mysore and forced her to be one of his wives.But this claim seems wrong where as Tipu and Unniyarcha where lived in different centuries 5 See also Aromal Chekavar Chekavar Vadakkan Pattukal Kalarippayattu Vatakara References ^ Unniyarcha ^ History of Malayalam Literature: Folk literature ^ Majumdar, Ramesh Chandra; Madhavananda (1980) [1953]. Great Women of India. Vedanta. pp. 318–319. ISBN 978-0874811117.  ^ Ayyappapanicker, K. (2000). Medieval Indian Literature: An Anthology. Sahitya Akademi. pp. 316. ISBN 8126003650.  ^ Balakrishnan, Bijeesh (2011-04-17) (in Malayalam). ടിപ്പുവിന്റെ ആർച്ച. Malayala Manorama. pp. 1,2.  This article about a fictional character is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · d · e