Top News

There’s something deeply moving about stepping into an ancestral home. The creak of old wooden floors, the scent of timeworn walls, and the quiet dignity of antique furniture come together to tell a story that spans centuries. These homes are more than just architectural marvels — they are keepers of history, culture, and memory.

Take Meda, for instance — my family’s ancestral home nestled in the heart of Karukachal, Kottayam in Kerala. This year, Meda celebrates a remarkable milestone: 350 years since its foundation in 1675. Built during a time when Kerala celebrated matriliny, martial pride, and spiritual depth, Meda stands as a silent witness to changing times and enduring traditions.

Constructed atop laterite soil and shaded by graceful coconut palms, Meda — a traditional Nair tharavad — is more than a heritage structure. It is a living, breathing soul. Its polished corridors have felt the footsteps of countless Nair women, whose quiet strength, wisdom, and grace upheld the lineage. They are the guardians of our past, and the reason the present stands rooted.

A Home Built in Matriliny

In 1675, when Meda was built, Kerala’s Nair community followed the Marumakkathayam system — a unique matrilineal tradition where property and lineage passed through the mother’s line. While the eldest uncle (karanavar) held authority, it was the women who carried forward the name, the legacy, and the soul of the family. Meda was a sanctuary of maternal wisdom.

In its prime, Meda echoed with the conch’s call at dawn, the soothing swirl of sandalwood smoke, and the sacred chants of visiting tantrics and astrologers. It housed tales of warriors returning from service to the Thekkumkoor Raja, women safeguarding sacred manuscripts, and paddy fields tilled with reverence. During festivals, the house would transform into a temple — alive with music, rituals, and devotion.

The Generosity of Narayanan Nair

The house derives its present name, Sree Narayana Soudham, from Narayanan Nair, the last matrilineal uncle of our tharavad. A visionary with deep social commitment, he donated 100 acres of land to the Nair Service Society (NSS), which led to the establishment of its first school in Karukachal. His generosity sowed the seeds of education for generations to come.

It is said that during the sacred month of Ramayana Masam, Mannathu Padmanabhan, the revered founder of the NSS, would visit Meda to recite the Ramayanam to Narayanan Nair — a tradition that beautifully blended scholarship, spirituality, and solidarity.

The Sacred Pond and the Mango Tree

Although Meda lacks a central nadumuttam (courtyard), it once had a sacred kulam (pond), where the aarattu ceremony of the local temple took place until the late 1980s. More than a water source, this pond was a spiritual centre — echoing with devotional chants and the sound of cymbals during temple festivities.  Today, it lives on in family memory as a place where the divine once touched earth.

Not far from the house stands an ancient mango tree, its roots entwined with the very soil that nurtured generations. Every summer, its fruits ripen to a golden sweetness that tastes of childhood, harvests, and sunlit afternoons. This tree is no ordinary plant — it is a quiet sentinel of time and a symbol of the life that still flows through Meda.

A Touch of the Dutch

It is said that the Dutch, who wielded trade and military power in 17th-century Kerala, influenced the design of elite homes. Meda’s high sloped roof, wide verandahs, and clever cross-ventilation seem to reflect that hybrid architecture — a beautiful confluence of the indigenous and the colonial, of the martial and the mystical.

Keeper of Secrets

Over the centuries, Meda has welcomed royal emissaries and freedom fighters, scholars and seers. It has seen celebrations under the stars and the sombre silence of final farewells. It is a repository of oral history, unspoken wisdom, and untold stories — secrets only the walls remember.

350 Years On…

As we step into the 351st year of Meda, I feel both humbled and honoured to be its custodian. In a world that races ahead, Meda stays anchored in stillness — reminding us that roots matter, that stories endure, and that even bricks can breathe.

To mark this milestone, we are documenting its legacy — preserving its history for future generations, so that they too may understand where they come from.

Meda is not just my home. It is my temple, my archive, and my truth.

Here’s to 350 years of belonging — and to the stories still waiting to be told.

[Prasita Sabari is an award-winning fashion designer and poet. She lives in New Delhi with her husband, Krishnanunni Harikumar, IAS (Government of India), their daughter, Vaidehi Krishnanunni, and her mother, Preetha Padmanabhan Nair.]