Pandanda Kuttappa (86), who conceived the idea of the Kodava family hockey tournament which morphed into a major sporting event and festival in Kodagu, passed away in Bengaluru on Thursday.
A former State Bank of India employee and an ex-first division hockey referee, Pandanda Kuttappa was bestowed the Karnataka Rajyothsava award in 2015.
The genesis of the tournament founded by him in 1997- along with his brother Pandanda Kashi Ponnappa - could be traced to his passion for sport in general and hockey in particular and a belief that tapping the inherent love among the Kodavas for hockey could help bring the families and the community together.
Kuttappa also feared that hockey would be relegated by the popularity of cricket in case it was not revived in his home district which had produced eminent national players.
The tournament, meant only for teams representing various Kodava families or clans, also emerged as a platform for the community members to discuss trade and business interests besides scouting for marital alliances. The first tournament was held in Kuttappa’s native village of Karada and nearly 60 teams took part in it. The format of the tournament was such that every year one of the Kodava clans had to host the event.
The popularity of the sport grew with each passing year and the tournament was arguably the largest of its kind in terms of the number of teams participating in it. More than 300 Kodava families would send their teams for the tournament that used to be held during April/May and draw a full-house crowd.