How a teashop owner’s name came to identify a place that later became a town is the story of Balan Pillai, 96, who died at Mathirapally Varun Nivas in Alappuzha on Wednesday.
Balan Pillai City is a town near Nedumkandam in Idukki. Though Balan Pillai had moved to Alappuzha years back, the name of the place remained.
The story of Balan Pillai is connected to Kallar Pattom Colony, the first colony set up by the State in the Idukki high range as part of the Grow More Food Scheme in 1955.
Balan Pillai reached Kallar as a settler-farmer under the scheme. Later, he started a teashop-cum-grocery shop in the village. It was at a time when goods were moved from Tamil Nadu on mules and the shop was the only one of its kind there.
In due course many other shops came there but the name of the place remained as Balan Pillai City. It is now the hub of the Ramakalmedu tourism centre. The new generation may not be familiar with Balan Pillai but one can gauge his service at a time when settlers came to a new palace braving extreme climate and wild animals there.
Balan Pillai City now extends to Wards 4, 5, and 6 of Karunapuram grama panchayat.
In the high range, there are many places that have derived its name from the first shop owner there. One such person was Umma, famous in her name as Ummakada, who died a few years back. There are places such as Labbakada, Achappan Kada, and Appappancity that got the name from the first shop owners there.
Then there are place names such as Thopramkudi and Vellayamkudi that derived its name from chieftains of tribal communities who lived there prior to the arrival of the new settlers.
Balan Pillai City gained popularity after the release of Malayalam film Elsamma Enna Aankutty. The story of the film unfolds in a sleepy village called Balan Pillai City. The film also has some interesting characters such as Balan Pillai, a teashop owner, as a character.
