KOCHI: When Marthanda Varma established the kingdom of Travancore in 1729 upon inheriting the feudal state of Venad, he also set up a postal service that was ahead of its time. The Travancore Anchal, a name derived from the Greek word ‘angelos’ (meaning a messenger or an angel), functioned through a network of postmen called Anchal Pillai, whose job was to travel on foot from place to place to deliver messages.
A little known figure in this narrative, Anchan Oottakkaran, who wore white clothes, a turban and a red sash on his chest and acrried a bag and a spear has seen a resurgence in the form of a paper doll crafted by husband-wife duo Sharat Sundar Rajeev and Sruthi Satheesan. Their online venture ‘Owl’s Awl’ offers bookmarks, articulated paper dolls, art prints, notebooks and vegan leather journals alluding to the seemingly forgotten history of Travancore.
For the couple, who are both architects, Owl’s Awl is the fruition of a sustained engagement with history as well as their penchant for art. Sharat specialises in conservative architecture and is a professor at College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram. He comes from a lineage of artists and craftsmen who were employed with the royal family, while Sruthi is an urban designer and educator whose initial interest in crafting hand-bound vegan leather journals led to the inception of Owl’s Awl in August last year.
“Our serious interest in the project was triggered almost two years ago. We wanted to offer leather journals as we knew there was a niche market for them. But being conservation architects, we looked for sustainable options and came across vegan leather. That was the original idea but we faced challenges with regard to procurement of raw materials because of the pandemic. At the same time, we were also mulling over paper dolls and bookmarks as Sruthi is interested in craft. So we pivoted to that for our maiden range of products. Our inspiration came from history. Although we are currently focusing on Travancore, we hope to represent other parts of the state. ‘Soul of Kerala’ is the theme we have ascribed,” says Sharat.
Besides the paper doll of Anchan Oottakkaran which comes with an accompanying bookmark of the Anchal Petti not unlike the modern post box, the current line of products also includes the puppet figures of Panchapandava with the Velakali bookmark, Hanuman Pandaram with the mask bookmark and the Tanjore nautch girl with her musicians.
Each of these deconstructed tableaus conceived and created after extensive research. Hand drawn by Sharat, thanks to his inherited skill, and then reproduced, what Owl’s Awl offers goes beyond mere utility value, every product is a collectible offering a window into a rich past slowly fading from popular imagination.
“The first image we worked with is the Panchapandava figure which assumes importance in the context of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple and the city itself. We found the image in an antique store, the Velakali bookmark seemed like an apt pairing. Then, we chanced upon an old picture of the Hanuman Pandaram owned by my grand uncle, the masked impersonator would visit houses in the city until the 1950s.
The paper doll we made can move one of his hands as if to strike a metal plate tied to his neck to announce his arrival. Finally, the Tanjore nautch party line was inspired from the company school paintings. It alludes to the story of maharaja Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma who famously fell in love with one of the court dancers and married her. We also have an art print of the scene,” says Sharat.
Sharat’s recreation of a little known composition by Raja Ravi Varma, which depicts a withered Hanuman paying obeisance to Rama while Sita and Lakshmana look over from the background, is another testament to Sharat and Sruthi’s scrupulous attempt to traverse a complex history of culture and art in Kerala and make accessible a few defining vignettes to the present generation.
“The painting was in private hands until recently. It is said to be an early work of Ravi Varma and to my knowledge, it was not in the public domain. I don’t think there is any book on the painter which contained this particular painting. Going ahead, we similarly plan to bring to the fore unknown traditions of Kerala, especially with regard to festivals and celebrations. We receive requests from people in other states in south India to represent their culture. However a lot of research goes into one product,” says Sharat.The products can be ordered on Instagram @owls.awl