Omanathinkal Kidavo...

OMANATHINKAL KIDAVO...

Kerala has a wealth of soft lilting folk lullabies. Nurtured down the generations, they have even cast an influence over mainstream Malayalam poetry. This poignant lullaby "Omanathinkal kidavo...", strikes a tender chord in every Malayalee. Generations of children have been lulled asleep by its soothing notes.

Sung by innumerable mothers over centuries the strains of this lullaby is dyed into the warp and woof of the Malayalee's cultural repertoire. Evoking intense nostalgia for a bygone phase of one's life filled with tender affections and motherly care, the lullaby also thrills one with a sense of deja vu.

This song is believed to have been composed for the young prince Swathi Thirunal of the erstwhile Travancore Kingdom by the famous poet lyricist Ravi Varman Thampi (1783-1856 AD), popularly known as Irayimman Thampi. He later became the court poet of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal, himself an eminent music composer and poet.