To the Editor
India’s World
Subject: On “Ottapalam: A Town in Malabar and the Making of Modern India”
Dear Editor,
I read your article on Ottapalam with interest. It presents several connections between the town and public life in India. While the piece focuses entirely on male figures from the region or nearby areas, I noticed the absence of some individuals whose contributions also merit recognition in this context.
Rukmini Menon, among the first women to join the Indian Foreign Service, was born in Ottapalam. Her story is an essential part of the town’s diplomatic legacy and would have enriched the article’s otherwise male-dominated narrative. She is not mentioned in the article. Her inclusion would have offered a more complete view of the town’s role in India’s diplomatic history.
Nirupama Menon Rao, born in Malappuram, about 44 kilometres from Ottapalam, also does not find mention. She served as India’s Foreign Secretary and ambassador to both the United States and China. She has written and spoken widely on Indian diplomacy and continues to be active in the public sphere. Since the article refers to figures with ancestral homes- Shashi Tharoor and Prakash Karat- within an hour’s drive of Ottapalam, it seemed relevant to consider her as well.
In addition, situating Ottapalam more clearly within the wider Malabar region might have allowed for the inclusion of others such as V. K. Krishna Menon, who was born near Calicut and played a significant role in India’s public life after independence.
I am writing not at all to diminish the achievements of those mentioned, but to suggest that a more balanced view — in telling the story of a place, such balance matters — across gender, geography, and profession is important. I hope future explorations of such richly layered histories will reflect a more inclusive view.
And may I add, KPS Menon Senior was born in Kottayam. Matrilineally, as a Nair, he was from Travancore. His mother was from Travancore and his father from Ottapalam. His wife’s family/tharawad (Palat) was from Ottapalam.
Sincerely,
Nirupama Menon Rao
Former Foreign Secretary of India,
Bengaluru