Onake Obavva- An Ordinary woman who displayed extraordinary courage
Onake Obavva (18th
Century) was a woman who fought the forces of Hyder Ali
single-handedly with a pestle (Onake)
in the kingdom of Chitradurga of Karnataka,
India.
Her husband was a guard of a watchtower in the rocky fort of Chitradurga.
In the state of Karnataka, she is celebrated along with Abbakka Rani,
Keladi Chennamma and Kittur
Chennamma, as the foremost women warriors and patriots
During the reign
of Madakari Nayaka, the city of Chitradurga was
besieged by the troops of Hyder Ali (1754-1779). A chance sighting of a
man entering the Chitradurga fort through a hole in the rocks led to a plan by
Hyder Ali to send his soldiers through that hole.
The Guard (Kahale Mudda
Hanuma, who was on duty near that hole) had gone home to have his lunch. During
his meal he needed some water to drink, so his wife Obavva went to collect
water in a pot from a pond which was near the hole in the rocks, halfway up the hill.She noticed the army trying to enter the fort through the hole.
She used the Onake
or pestle (a wooden long club meant for pounding paddy grains) to kill the
soldiers one by one by hitting them on the head and then quietly moving the
dead without raising the suspicions of the rest of the troops.
Mudda Hanuma,
Obavva's husband, returned from lunch, was shocked to see Obavva standing with
a blood stained Onake and several of the enemies' dead bodies around her.
Later, the same day, she was found dead either due to shock or having been
killed by the enemy soldiers.[1]
She belonged to the Holayas (Chalavadi)
community.Though her brave attempt saved the fort this time, Madakari could not resist
the attack by Hyder Ali during 1779, when the fort of Chitradurga was lost to
Hyder Ali
.
She is considered
to be the epitome of Kannada female pride. The hole through which Hyder Ali's
soldiers sneaked is called Onake Obavvana Kindi (kindi=hole) or Onake kindi.Her heroic effort is depicted in a famous song-sequence in Nagarahavu
picture directed by Puttanna Kanagal. The sports stadium in
Chitradurga - Veera Vanithe Onake Obavva Stadium, is named after her.
References:
https://www.shortstories.co.in/onake-obavva/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onake_Obavva
https://yourstory.com/2015/08/herstory-flashback-onake-obavva/
http://www.rejectedprincesses.com/princesses/onake-obavva
