The Story Behind the Making of Malayappulayan
- Ann Maria Thomas
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
A Journey Through History, Heritage, and the Forgotten Wonders of Kuttanad
Some stories are not just written, they are excavated. The graphic novel Malayappulayan, published by Malay Publications, is one such work, painstakingly brought to life after years of research, travel, oral history collection, and artistic experimentation by the artist Shabi Karuvatta. It is a fictional representation crafted from the original tales. What began as an attempt to understand a mysterious backwater legend eventually grew into a full-scale cultural documentation project, the rediscovery of a world that once existed in the heart of Kerala.
This is the story behind that journey.
Malayappulayan: A Forgotten Man Who Walked on Water
The legend of Malayappulayan had lived for generations in scattered memories, whispered songs, and fading folklore. He was said to glide across the deep waters of Kuttanad using nothing but his bare feet and a single bamboo pole - a feat that sounds impossible to the modern mind. But these were once the everyday wonders of backwater life.
In old Kuttanad, water was not an obstacle but a path. People developed incredible skills that have now completely vanished - like skimming across the lake surface, balancing effortlessly, and adjusting speed with the tip of a bamboo pole. What was once a form of water travel had, over time, become a forgotten water sport.
Capturing this lost skill became the emotional heart of the project.
Songs Hidden in the Waters
During his research, writer–creator Shabi Karuvatta travelled across villages, spoke to elders, and dug out songs that had never been written down - boatmen’s chants, paddy, field rhythms, lakeshore melodies.
These elusive kayalēla pattu (backwater work songs) and varyēla pattu (field songs) formed a major pillar of the graphic novel. Three original songs were written in proper pallavi–charanam–anucharana structure. These songs are not just decorative elements; they carry history, rhythm, sorrow, and memory.
For the first time in the Malayalam graphic novel space, songs themselves became a storytelling device.
The Animation Influence in Malayappulayan
Every frame of Malayappulayan reflects two decades of Shabi Karuvatta’s experience in animation. The attention to movement, gesture, expression, and scenic atmosphere is evident in the dynamic compositions - scenes breathe, waves swell, and characters express layers of emotion.
The work demanded special care because many characters belonged to distinct social positions in old Kuttanad. Their body language, dignity, hesitation, fear, pride - all needed to be shown authentically.
The graphic novel is not only a story; it is a cinematic experience on paper.
Reconstructing a Lost Landscape
Kuttanad is not just geography - it is geology, myth, archaeology, and memory intertwined.
Few realise that the name Kuttanad itself originates from an ancient memory of destruction: the “burnt land.” Historical accounts describe a massive prehistoric fire, a flood that scorched the Khandava forests, followed by a sea surge that swallowed the region.
Blackened ancient tree trunks still lie preserved at the bottom of Kuttanad’s lakes and paddy fields - like sleeping giants.
Many modern place names emerged from that fiery past:
Karuvatta — “the land burned black and dried”
Venthanaattu Kayal → Vembanad Lake
Kanjakulam → Kayamkulam
Karippad → Harippad
Champpakkulam — “the red pond”
Karthikappally — “the blackened chapel land”
Kavalam — from a boat burned in the fire
This archaeological geography shaped the world of Malayappulayan. The graphic novel transports readers into an era when these landscapes were alive, fertile, mysterious, and filled with human resilience.
A Visual Chronicle of People Who Sustained Life
The Pulayar communities of old Kuttanad were not merely “labourers” - they were the life-sustainers (pulartthunnavar), those who nurtured the land, water, crops, and cattle. Over generations, the word evolved into “Pulayar.”
The graphic novel respectfully reconstructs the lives of these people:
their indigenous engineering
their backwater travel techniques
their wooden platforms among the trees
their songs
their relationship with the local chieftains
their involvement in the Travancore–Chempakasseri conflicts
It is both a tribute and a reclamation of history.
A Massive Research Expedition
One of the most challenging parts of the project was mapping the movements of Marthandavarma’s Travancore army, in a time when:
There were no roads,
no bridges over the rivers,
And the backwaters were the only travel routes.
Reconstructing troop movements from Ambalappuzha to Karthikappally required a blend of history, geography, and imagination grounded in fact.
The staging of each scene, where characters stand, how boats line up, how the lake, scape bends, was treated with the care of a film director planning a major period drama.
More Than a Graphic Novel - A Cultural Revival
The making of Malayappulayan was not simply an artistic task. It was an act of preservation of stories, songs, landscapes, skills, and memories that would otherwise disappear forever.
This book is a bridge connecting today’s readers with the ancient living culture of Kuttanad, a world where water shaped life, nature shaped identity, and humans shaped history.
Get your copy today
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