The Mani Meda (clock tower) in the Karuvelappura Malika holds its head high, interrupting the harmonious skyline of the lengthy edifice. Even today, we can see large crowds of tourists and pilgrims assembling beneath the tower to get a view of the clock. Once, the residents of the Thiruvananthapuram Fort area had their life tuned to the chimes of the clock, but nowadays the musical sound gets diluted in the clamour of the traffic.
The clock itself is a remarkable artefact, for above the dial is carved the head of a man with round bulging eyes and elongated earlobes. Every hour, when the clock chimes, two goats ram against the man’s jaws, forcing his mouth open. According to a popular tale, the clock was fixed to commemorate erstwhile Travancore’s victory against Tippu Sultan.
Certain sources say that the clock was installed during the reign of Swathi Tirunal Rama Varma (1829-1847), whereas some date it back to the reign of Karthika Tirunal Rama Varma (1758-1798).
Historian V.V.K. Valath is of the opinion that Vâdu Mestiri, a native of Padmanabhapuram, who later settled in Thiruvananthapuram was the one assigned to look after the clock. Vâdu Mestiri settled in Vanchiyoor, where he established the Kollan Vilakam Veedu. Later, Vâdu Mestiri’s sons were entrusted with the daily winding and repair of the clock. “My maternal ancestors were skilled blacksmiths who made iron articles and weapons for the royals,” says R. Vijayakumar, the present patriarch of the family. “After settling in Vanchiyoor, trade flourished, and soon the male members of the family were known as Vanchiyoor Kollanmar (blacksmiths),” adds Vijayakumar.
Vijayakumar’s maternal uncle, the late Govindan Achari, was the last caretaker of the clock. “Every evening, around 4 p.m., he went to the Fort,” recalls Vijayakumar, “After collecting the key from the Chellam vaka office, he climbed up the narrow stairs of the tower to wind the clock.” The life of the caretaker was forever restricted; the nature of his job demanded his presence in the town every day. Since the winding had to be carried out with extreme care, the senior caretakers never opted to consign the task to inexperienced hands.
Kerala Varma Valiya Koil Thampuran (b.1845-d.1914), renowned scholar and poet, recalls in ‘ Entae Mrigayasmaranakal ’ (Memories of Hunting) that it was Kunjan, a blacksmith from Vanchiyoor, who made a magnificent gun for his use, following the order of Ayilyam Tirunal Rama Varma, the then Maharaja of Travancore. Kerala Varma recorded that the blacksmith, Kunjan, was the descendant of the Vanchiyoor Kollan, who crafted the clock installed in the Mani Meda.
According to Kunjan, one of his early ancestors who went abroad had learned the techniques of clock-making by associating with expert European clockmakers. Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer regarded this to be baseless, for there are no records to support Kunjan’s claims. Valath believes that the clock was made following the Dutch technique. Considering the presence of the Dutch in Padmanabhapuram and Udayagiri, it is highly probable that the local smith had acquired the technique from them. Moreover, a similar clock (without the head and the goats) can be found in the Padmanabhapuram palace too.
