Kottakkal: It has been 120 years since a room at Kizhakke Kovilakam became known as 'Bharatha Muri’ (The Mahabharata Room). The translation of the Mahabharata into Malayalam by the legendary poet Mahakavi Kodungallur Kunhikuttan Thampuran remains a watershed moment in the state’s literary heritage. Today, the family continues to meticulously preserve this sacred space in his wife’s ancestral palace, where the epic feat was brought to life.

Thampuran moved into the Kottakkal Kovilakam following his marriage to Sreedevi Thampuratti. During his residence here between 1894 and 1913, he translated Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Othello and composed countless poems.besides translating the Mahabharata. The ordinary room at Kizhakke Kovilakam became the place where many literary works were created.

The translation began on the morning of Medam 25 in the Malayalam calendar year 1079 (May 1904). To keep pace with the poet’s legendary speed, a dedicated printing press was set up within the palace premises itself, turning out printed sheets almost before the ink from his quill could dry.

Today, the Bharatha Muri is maintained with deep reverence under the guidance of K C Dileep Raja, manager of the Kovilakam Trust and a close relative of Sreedevi Thampuratti. A lamp is kept burning in memory of thampuran. The room stands as a living museum, graced with historical relics including the reference texts Thampuran consulted, early prints of the translation, his traditional wooden reading desk (vayanappalaka), and rare photographs of luminaries who have visited this literary shrine over the decades.