Kottayam: Six years have passed since a cultural centre was opened in memory of famed Kerala born Carnatic musician, Shadkala Govinda Marar in Vennimala near Puthupally. But visit it today and you see it lying forlorn and abandoned with no sign of any cultural acitivity in its grounds, denigrating the memory of the famed artiste who lived a couple of centuries ago.
Shadkala Govinda Marar(1798 and 1843) who was born in Pulickal near the Vennimala temple here and was acclaimed for his ‘Sopana Sangeetham,’ ( singing in front of the Sreekovil of a temple with the aid of an “Edakka” a percussion instrument) from a young age. His talent won him the admiration of Swathi Thirunal, the then King of Travancore, who is said to have gifted him a ‘ponedakka’ (golden percussion instrument) as a reward.
Although the government had intentions of honouring his memory with the cultural centre inaugurated by then minister, Mons Joseph in April 2008, the local panchayath is reportedly taking no interest promoting the centre.
“Though the cultural centre can be used to train youth if not hold cultural programmes, it has been lying idle for years. This is an insult to the memory of the great musician who has won acclaim across the country,” says Mr PS Varrier Vennimala, a local historian.
When contacted, Puthupally panchayath president, Sasikala Devi, could not explain why the memorial was lying neglected. “The matter will be raised at the next panchayath meeting, and hopefully a solution will be found,” she said.
