"In these bhoota aradhane performances, an oft-invoked spirit is that of a valorous queen of the little town of Ullal, Abbakka Mahadevi, as she is hailed by the locals. Sources, such as archival records, travelogues of several Portuguese travellers and historical analysis point towards the presence of two or three Abbakkas, all of whom fought against the Portuguese army between the 1550s and 1640s CE. Folklore and performances such as the bhoota aradhane or yakshagana treat all three Abbakkas as one great queen and a brilliant personality Abbakka Mahadevi or Rani Abbakka. In the complete absence of proper archival documentation around the queens, the life stories of the women are interchangeably used and are prone to much error. But more than the details of each individual, what is important is this constant and successful feminine resistance that this small region in coastal Karnataka offered to a mighty European power, the Portuguese, for several decades."
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Sources
Sampath V. (2022). Bravehearts of Bharat : vignettes from indian history. Penguin Random House India
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Abbakka_Chowta
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Abbakka Chowta
Rani Abbakka Chowta was the first Tuluva Queen of Ullal who fought the Portuguese in the latter half of the 16th century. She belonged to the Chowta dynasty, an indigenous Tuluva dynasty who ruled over parts of coastal Karnataka (Tulu Nadu), India.
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