Kottakochiyum Kadalum Sakshi

by Anuradha

A thrilling saga of loyalty, deceit, love and war. Seventeenth century Malabar. Law and order lay in shambles as the Portuguese terrorize the locals. Native kings troop in separate camps for and against the foreign invaders. The rift is so deep that Samoothiri of Calicut, the sworn enemy of the Kochi kingdom, has finally decided to join forces with Kochi to fight the outsiders. In a dramatic turn of events, the heir to the Kochi throne, Kerala Varma and his brother, Veera Kerala Varma, go into exile in guise of sanyasis to escape the Portuguese. During their journey, Veera Kerala Verma falls in love with Unnimaya, the gorgeous niece of the army chief of Chempakassery Raja, a major Portuguese ally. Another storm is brewing in the horizon. The Dutch, seizing the opportunity to topple the Portuguese rule, plan to partner with Kerala Varma and Samoothiri. Will they succeed. Who will rule Kochi next. Will Veera Kerala Varma’s and Unnimaya’s love triumph above duty.

196 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2015

Reviews

[Vishnu Chevli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frankly speaking, if you would like to read historical fiction of a region (state or city) then look for a book written by locals in their native language. If you can not read in the native language, then check the translated edition. You will not get the same level of satisfaction from non-native's work. At least that is my experience till now. I have read K M Munshi's "Glory of Patan", "King/Master of Gujarat" & "King of King". Same way I have read Kalki Krishnamurthy's Ponniyin Selvan's translation by Sumeetha Manikandan. "Silent Witness" has touched the same level for me. I loved the book.

Focused around the Seventeenth century when the Portuguese were losing their control over Indian (southern) nations due to Dutch aggression & local government/kingdoms' freedom struggle. The story started with Portuguese were still trying their best to keep things in control. The kingdom of Kochi was about to receive its beloved king in form of Prince Kerala Varma. But due to the betrayal of a minister & rival royal family, the prince was denied his due rights just an hour before his coronation. The prince along with his brother Veera Kerela Verma went into the exile (underground) for time being. On the other hand, the king of Samoothiri Kingdom has extended his hand of friendship towards Kochi over years of rivalry. There were many other local chieftains & minister who may give support to Prince. But fighting a war in open with Portuguese was a major concern for the prince. Would be able to overrule foreign invaders? Would be able to handle Dutch inclusion if takes their help? Read the book to know more.

The more I read the book, more I was convinced that inspiration behind Anuraadha is same that was behind Munshi & Kalki. The way story unfolded with characters, it will take you on a historical movie. My personal favorite characters are Prince's brother Veera Kerela Verma & his lover Unnimaya. Lovers' story & struggle gives entertainment/softness to the book. Wherein war, strategies & conspiracy gives an element of engagement & interest. On top of that sketched prepared by artist Namboodiri for various character also let you visualize how they would look like. (Again same in Munshi's original edition has many characters' sketches)

The only problem I faced was following character & locations' name, it took me 50% of the book to follow without checking important character page.

Detailed Review Link - https://chevusread.blogspot.com/2019/...

[Harshita Gupta · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Silent Witness is an impressive blend of history and fiction. A translated work of Malayalam novel set in seventeenth-century in Kerala. The plot takes back to the times of history when Portuguese was losing control of the Kerala territory after ruling for a sizeable number of years and influence of the Dutch East Indian company was taking over.
Irked by the Portuguese rule for its injustice and corruption, Samoothiri of Calicut and Princes of Kochi kingdom, though sworn enemies of each other join hands to challenge the Portuguese supremacy. Later, few native kingdoms also joined hands with them against the Portuguese. However, there were few who became allies of the Portuguese.
The book outlines the war episodes exchanged a number of times between the two troops, thus making it more thrilling. Amidst the war, treachery, and deceit, a love story blooms between Veera Kerala Varma, prince of Kerala and Unnimaya, the niece of army chief of Portuguese ally, thus bringing in an engaging turn to the story.
There were unduly many characters making it hard to acknowledge in the beginning, but later in the story, it all made sense and connected. I loved the illustrations-beautiful and splendid.
The epilogue of the book giving out the historical facts of Portuguese rule builds up an urge to look out for more information. And, thus I ended up reading more on the internet about the Portuguese, Dutch and then British rule specifically in Kerala state.
The Silent Witness is a treat for the readers of historical fiction. Overall, an engaging read.

[Bookish Indulgenges with b00k r3vi3ws · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silent Witness by Anuradha is a historical fiction set in the Seventeenth Century India. It is set in the beautiful Kerala, to be more precise, where the Sammudris of Kozhikode, the Rajas of Kochi and the Portuguese were all trying to gain the majority foothold. With the politics of the kingdom and the Portuguese conspiracies proves to be too much as the Crown Prince Kerala Varma and his brother is forced to go into hiding. In his quest for survival and also finding potential allies, Kerala Varma meets and falls in love with Unnimaya. Finally, with the help of the Dutch, Kerala Varma plans to win back his throne and title but will his love for Unnimaya be his strength or a hindrance?

The author has a knack for weaving a beautiful story. The book has quite a few characters as part of each of the camps represented in the story. I will admit it though that it took me some time to get into the flow of the story where I could understand and identify each character by its name. Then again, I have always been weak with names. So, this may not be an issue for others. It would have been very easy to complicate the story and confuse the readers. Instead the threads of the story are well interwoven to make it more interesting to the readers than anything else. The narrative felt smooth and it maintained the pace well enough. The main characters have been developed well. I could feel myself liking and disliking particular characters as I am sure the author meant it to be. The politics, the drama, the romance… each element of the plot has added to it and created a web that keeps the readers indulged.

Read the full review on Bookish Indulgences with b00k r3vi3ws

[dunkdaft · Rating 4 out of 5]

History was never my favorite subject. I never wanted to memorize places, wars, their years and genealogy of the rulers. Until, I finished my studies and the bookworm inside me woke up again and now it has gone totally opposite way. The subject I despised earlier, now has become my favorite. Being in northern part of India, the books, references and even pop culture like movies has nothing else but the history of this part only. Even the current historical fiction too are available for this part only. And that made me wonder, what could be the story/ies of the southern states of India? The states where Zamorin allowed foreigners for the first time. The states which ruled thru their spice trades. So I started searching for such books. And luckily I found this one. The Silent Witness written by Anuradha. Synopsis promised this is going to be something different and indeed, it is something that is not read by me since long time.

The Silent Witness tells the story of Kerala. At the time, when Portuguese ruled it.At the time that even a small state like Kerala of today, was not one state but several kingdoms were interlinked to each other by one force or another. Dutch, Samoothiri, Kochi, Varmas and more. The story revolves around Kerala Verma and his brother. Both also known as Kochunni and Kuttan Thampuran. How conspiracies made them go into disguise, how Kochunni meets Unnimaya-a beautiful girl, how the strength of small states proves futile for statesmen of Portuguese. And how they are forced to move out of God's own country.

The canvas is very wide and looking at the page nos. I knew this is not actually a lengthy one at storytelling despite the fact it covers a vast time period. But still, it keeps you engaged because of the freshness of premises. This is perhaps my first ever read which is set in south India. And that make the reading experience unique. Characters like Kochunni, Kuttan and even Unnimaya are writter in a very simple way, not to exaggerate their bravery or beauty. But a well balanced, true to life, take makes it more worthwhile to read it.

Thought I have never been to Kerala, and this was first time I was reading about the area, it was a bit difficult to connect to certain scenes and rituals and even daily chores-which must be nostalgic to a south Indian reader. But still, it is an enriching and refreshing experience to read such things. Anuradha's pen does not master at the action though, and that's why you get to read war sequences in a lighter, non-descriptive way in which scenes move fast and only basic idea is give. But no, I am not complaining here because everyone has their own style.

The Silent Witness definitely takes you out in an unknown land, despite the fact that it is just a leaf out of the history of our country. History - that is full of such leaves which needs attention. And here Anuradha does just that. I would recommend this to all fiction lovers as well as history lovers. It is surely a worthy read.

[Geeta Nair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Translated from the Malayalam novel ‘Kottakochiyum Kadalum Sakshi’, The Silent Witness by Anuradha (Radha Narayana Menon is her real name while Anuradha is the pen name), is a historical fiction set in Seventeenth Century Kerala, when the Sammudris of Kozhikode (also known as Zamorins of Calicut) and the Rajas of Kochi were sworn enemies and the Portuguese were busy strengthening their presence in this coastal part of the country. Backed by in-depth research, the story apart from giving us an insight into the relationship between the various princely states amongst themselves and with the Portuguese, explores a saga of deceit. Somewhere on the way a new story, the story of Unnimaya and Bodhananda Swami gets linked to the main story, and provides an interesting twist in the tale. Inhuman acts, humane touch and misunderstandings along-with some good espionage activities as well as underground activities give the story a touch of reality. But what really clicks with the reader is the simple and engaging style of writing. It is this that does justice to the plot and makes the history of the time interesting; else we all know that history does often bog down ordinary folks making them averse to anything that has got to do something or the other with it.
The plot was good, the characters were interesting and the pace was perfect, but then what is it that withholds me from pronouncing The Silent Witness ‘Perfect!’? To know that one must understand some basic facts regarding an original and a translation.

An original piece of writing sees the author pour out his/ her soul in the same, play with varied emotions, and employ words that come naturally with the source language. However when it comes to a translation, the task is tough and often the resources (words/ phrases/ idioms) are limited or so wide and confusing that the translator has to spend hours to get a sentence or an emotion right. Ultimately the effort put in bears fruit only if the translation is an exact replica of the original or one that conveys the message to perfection. When I say ‘replica‘, I don’t mean a literal translation but what I mean is that a reader reading it, cannot identify which is the original and which is the translated version. Often the best way to check on this is by re-translating the translated text to the original. However, in the case of ‘The Silent Witness’ the flaws in the translation were glaring especially in the beginning chapters. Having been in the field and also since the source language happens to be my mother-tongue, this sometimes bugged me, but then I slowly shut my mind to the fact that this was a translation, and focused only on the story. I suggest that the book be re-looked at from this angle too and the flaws in translation be smoothed out to make it a perfect piece of writing.

VERDICT

An enjoyable and engaging read of deceit, treachery, love and relationships, this one makes history truly interesting.

[Jonali · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Silent Witness by Anuradha is set among large events: the fight between the Sammudris of Kozhikode and the Rajas of Kochi and their combined fight against the ever growing power of the Portuguese. In this mix is thrown the threat from the Dutch, who wanted to establish their trade centre and control the spice market under the banner of the Dutch East Indi Company. They tried to seize the opportunity to topple the Portuguese rule by joining hands with Kerala Varma and Samoothiri.
Translated by Nirmala Aravind from the Malayalam novel ‘Kottakochiyum Kadalum Sakshi,’ this is a tale of loyalty, deceit, love, and war.

The author does an excellent job delineating in detail the struggle of the South Indian kingdoms to maintain its independence at the face of foreign invasion. It’s interesting to note how the search for the lands of spice changed the face of the world and how the trade in spice affected places and people from Portugal to the native India s, who suffered under the brutal rule of both Dutch and Portuguese.
Anuradha has also included a sweet love story in this rivalry for power. It is the story of Veera Kerala Verma falling in love with Unnimaya. That the two come from opposing camps makes for an even beautiful read.

Aravind’s translation is smooth but it can’t be denied that much of the flavour gets lost when changing tongues. The book contains some illustrations by artist Namboodiri. These are line sketching and don’t add much to the story telling. That said, I was fascinated by this patently but beautifully told story.

A beautiful blend of factual and fictional narrative, The Silent Witness is a vigorous but restrained historical survey.

[Devika Ramadoss · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Silent witness is an unique book which balance history and romance on an equal proportion. I really enjoyed reading this novel.It’s neither over exaggerated nor underplayed.

The illustrations were so beautiful and gave the realistic native feel of Kerala while going through the story pages.

The story is closely knitted with readers mind that I am confused whether should I give the credit to the author or the translator.
Yes, the book has been translated from Malayalam.

I loved the alias names of the kings and people of Kerala. I felt the connect with the characters while reading with their alias names. The native touch at each and every sequence of the novel.

Kerala Varma, the crown prince and his brother get caught between the kingdom politics and Portuguese affairs. They had to take a disguise in order to escape from treason and execution. Kerala Varma had to join hands with Dutch to end the ruthless Portuguese rule. Will they win this battle?

I couldn’t put the book down as the narration was crystal clear and pleasant through out the novel. The supporting character’s stories were also equally good and boosted the main line of story to be engrossing.

The cover of the book is so authentic. The story is not entirely about the actual history but with the mixture of romance and hatred which happened among the history. The author kept the story intact with minimal romance,affection,love, greed, conspiracy, war,battle and peace. A precise narration throughout.

Overall ” The Silent Witness” takes us to a journey to the near history of Portuguese rule on Kerala which showcase the two sides of loyalty and bravery.

[Meghana Pawar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Silent Witness by Anuradha is one of the most intriguing books I have read lately. The language is simple yet fascinating. I appreciate the complexity and research involved in writing this book and putting together this story. The story is set in the 17th century and revolves around the Kochi Kingdom and the state of Kerala. Honestly, I did not read the book in one go but in parts so it was hard for me to keep a track of so many characters that are mentioned. There way too many characters and thus it makes the plot tedious I am not a fan of the war genre but this was an exception. The love angle was a refreshing one amidst the chaos for me. I liked how the author has vividly written the love story here. The book is a thrilling saga of loyalty, deceit, love, and war.
Published by Jaico Publishing House (India)
- @meghanazexpress

[Amrita Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Silent Witness' by Anuradha is a unique fusion of history, politics, and fiction. It tells the readers the tale of Kerala set in the 17th century. The author traverses backward in time to explain how these princely states became a pawn to the imperial project, due to their internal dissensions, thereby paving the way to easy colonization by the Portuguese and the Dutch. The story revolves around Crown Prince Kerala Verma and his brother. When the Portuguese conspiracies prove to be lethal, the princes are forced to go into hiding to safeguard themselves and their loved ones. It's a story about war, colonial politics, and the quest for survival woven together with the yarns of love, deceit, vengeance, and redemption.

I thought the book was phenomenal. The novelist has engaged in meticulous research of the 15th to 17th century Kerala and notably included most of the major events that occurred during the period. I learnt so much about Kerala's past through this book. Temples and temple festivals are sites of faith and power dynamics and cultural transactions in Kerala's society. The novelist has truthfully invoked famous and leading temples of Kerala, adding to the authenticity of the cultural setting of the novel and drawing attention to the pivotal role temples played in the lives of royal families.

I do feel that the characters in the story could have done with a little more work. Most of the characters lacked depth and some seemed rather puerile. This, however, did not take away from my experience of reading the novel. The overall novelty of the theme makes it an excellent read.

[Nitya Iyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This read gave me a lovely little foray into the history of Kochi around the early 17th century somewhat along the lines of Philipa Gregory's Plantagenet novels. Thankfully, I didn't come to book without any prior knowledge, so I was easily able to navigate the enormous cast of characters and locations. Unfortunately it feels like the slice of the time the author attempts to capture is so actively populated that we never really get enough time to get to know the players, their intentions or their motivations. Instead they simply fill fairly flat archetypal roles tumbling towards the expected outcome.
Still, a fun read.

[Aparna Paliyath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silent witness is a must read for all those who look for a perfect blend of intellectual and emotional satisfaction from a good read. The story unfolds in a seamless fashion with a very engaging flow of events. The writer is very successful in communicating the historical events with a master stroke of fiction. Thoroughly enjoyed reading!!

[Satvik Vuppala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe an underrated book, people might lose interest as half of the book talks about setting up the story and introduction to the characters as there are many, so if your are patient and read through it, I think it's worth the wait.