Chennai , Aug 1 (BPNS)
Kuyili, the commander in chief of Rani Velu Nachiyar of Sivaganga is the epitome of sacrifice in the annals of the Indian independence movement. However, her name is not known to many. Kuyili and her queen Rani Venu Nachiyar had valiantly fought against the British East India company much before the first war of Independence of 1857. Their fight was in the year 1780, but are relatively unknown in the country despite their epic warfare tactics and historic win against the mighty British saving the honour and pride of the Sivaganga kingdom.
Kuyili is considered to be the first suicide bomber in the annals of India’s independence movement.
When the King of Arcot attacked Sivaganga with the support of the British, the King of Sivaganga,’ Muthuvaduganatha Peria Oodaya Thevar’, could not stand the onslaught of the British and died a valiant death. However, his wife Velu Nachiyar who was a multifaceted personality with knowledge of several languages including English, French, and Urdu in addition to Tamil escaped along with their one-year-old daughter, Vellachi, and her trusted lieutenant ‘Kuyili’.
She escaped to Virupakshi in Dindigul vowing that she would return back to Sivaganga to avenge her husband’s death and reclaim the kingdom of Sivaganga.
‘Kuyili’, her lieutenant whose courage was unheard of during those days. Her father was a spy of the King of Sivaganga and this led her to the inner circle of Queen Velu Nachiyar. Kuyili had saved the life of the Queen in several instances earlier even when the King was alive.
Kuyil was addressed also as Veerathalapathi (Brave Commander ) and also as Veeramangai (Brave woman). A woman coming from the present-day Scheduled caste or the downtrodden caste, Arunthathiyar community.
Born to Periyamuthan and Raku, her father and mother were farmers but her father had doubled up occasionally as the spy of the King of Sivaganga and thus Kuyili had the fortune to enter into the inner circles of the King and Queen of Sivaganga. Her mother Raku had lost her life fighting valiantly against a ravaging bull that was bent to destroy their farmland.
Kuyili had once found that her Silambam teacher (Martial arts teacher) was a spy who was bent to kill the queen and saved her from the teacher.
In another instance, Kuyili injured herself while saving the queen when she was attacked in the night by an unknown person. After these two instances, she was made the commander in chief of the woman’s army and bodyguard of Queen Velu Nachiyar.
Kuyili after being made the Commander in Chief of the woman’s army strategized the moves after Queen aligned her forces with Hyder Ali as she knew that the British with their superior military power would easily defeat them.
She knew that during the Navaratri period only women would be allowed entry to the Sivaganga fort as they were allowed to celebrate the Vijayadashami festival. The festival was celebrated in the Rajarajeswai Amman temple.
Kuyili and her fellow women soldiers entered the fort with baskets of flowers with sharp weapons hidden inside these flowers and suddenly mounted an attack on the British. She knew that the ammunitions of the British were kept in the Sivaganga fort and Kuyili had already noted out as to where exactly the ammunition was stored. A sudden attack by Kuyili and her fellow women soldiers took the British by surprise and in the milieu, Kuyili asked her fellow woman soldier to pour ghee over her and went inside the storage area of weapons and set herself on fire destroying all the weapons of the British.
The sacrifice of Kuyili helped Queen Velu Nachiyar and her forces reclaim the Sivaganga kingdom.
A memorial to Kuyili’s brave sacrifice is erected a Sivaganga now.
