KASARGOD: Nelliatt Shyamalan, a Malayali doctor of Philadelphia in the US, is scheduled to visit various places of the state to speak about his findings on the origin of the Thiyyas of Malabar.
Dr Shyamalan, who is now in Chennai, told ‘Express’ that he would be coming shortly to the state to present his view that the Thiyyas had Aryan origin. He would conduct PowerPoint presentations in Kochi, Kozhikode and Kannur on his research work. He lives in the US with his wife and son Manoj Night Shyamalan, Hollywood director.
Dr Shyamalan, who belongs to the Nelliatt family of Kannur, a Thiyya family, said he had ample proof to prove that the Thiyyas had Aryan origin.
“I have proved it through a DNA test for which I had used my own DNA,” he says.
According to Dr Shyamalan, the DNA of the Thiyyas matches with that of the people of the present Kirgisthan.
“A group of people from there had migrated to Malabar centuries ago following a natural calamity and settled here. Thiyyas have no biological connection with the Ezhavas. The body structure, complexion and cultural background of the two groups dispel the myth that they are one and the same people,” he said.
Purushothaman Mulloli of the Global Thiyya Initiative said the Thiyyas had a dynasty based in Eruvassy in Kannur district.
“The Thiyyas had hundreds of temples known as kavus in which they themselves were the priests. Besides, Theyyams and other art forms are part of the Thiyya cultural heritage. They have Kazhagams and are adept in ‘Poorakkali’.”
“According to the voluminous book ‘The Castes and Tribes of Southern India’ compiled by British anthropologist Edgar Thurston, Mannanar, the head of the Thiyya dynasty, used to conduct the revival rites of the Namboothiri women who were expelled from the caste and regarded as dead.
The Namboodiri women who were subjected to ‘Padiyadachu pindam vekkal’ would approach Mannanar, who would conduct the revival function, taking them as his sisters in the royal family.
All this showed the superior culture of the Thiyyas, and the Thiyyas and the Ezhavas are not the same,” he added.