Swati Thirunal, the musician king of the state of Travancore is regarded as one of the foremost composers of his time and a great devotee of Lord Padmanabha (Lord Vishnu). He was born in the year 1813 to the Queen regent Rani Gouri Lakshmi Bayi.  He was named as per the family tradition of naming the princes after the star. That is the reason he came to be called as Swathi (star name) Thirunal Rama Varma.

No male heir was available in the Travancore Royal family and the threat of the infamous Doctrine of Lapse loomed large over this tiny state. Nobody in Travancore, including the then British resident Col. Munroe wanted the kingdom to be annexed to the British India. 

At that time, the Queen Regent, Rani Gouri Lakshmi Bayi conceived. Col. Munroe informed to his superiors that a heir is born to Travancore much before the baby was born. Though it is hard to believe, it is true that the British Resident even prayed at the Padmanabhaswamy Temple and made offerings that a baby boy be born to the Queen.

He was a born intellect and acquired various skills right from his early age.  His mother Rani Laxmi Bayi, the Queen Regent, passed away when he was two and he was taken care by her aunt, Rani Parvathi Bayi, who took over as the Queen Regent. She was very careful about the education of the young prince. Tutors were appointed for teaching him different subjects and language.  She was far-sighted about the need for having knowledge of different languages in the context of an emerging multilingual polity and administration. The young Swati Thirunal was thought Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Persian, Hindi and Marathi besides the mother tongue.  The extraordinary intellectual exuberance of Swathi Thirunal and the deeper interest and insight he showed in music and literature, amazed his tutors and the British personalities who visited the state. He was much attached to his aunt and shared a very special and warm relationship with her till the end.

All the Travancore kings were great devotees of the Lord Padmanabha and were ruling as ‘Padmanabha Dasas’ or servants of the Lord. Swati Thirunal is credited with composing around 400 compositions in Sanskrit, Malayalam, Hindustani, Telugu and Kannada. The bulk of his compositions are dedicated to Lord Vishnu though some are addressed to lord Shiva and Devi.

His conspicuous compositions include the ‘Navaratnamaalika’ - nine compositions devoted to the nine forms of ‘bhakti’ - and the Navaraatri Kirtanams - the nine compositions dedicated to the nine-day Navaraaatri festival and which as per tradition are still sung at the ‘Navaratri Mandapam’ the concert hall attached to the Padmanabhaswamy Temple at Thiruvananthapuram.

Some of his favorite works were Kripaya Paalaya in Charukesi, Suma Sayaka in Kaapi, Gopa Nandana in Bhushavali, Deva Deva Kalayaami in Mayamalavagowla, Pannagendra Shayana in Ragamalika. One of his brilliant achievements is the ‘Ragamala’, which gives a detail account on the ten incarnations of Vishnu.

Being a great composer and a singer, Swati Thirunal also supported other musicians and his court was teaming with eminent singers and dancers.

Swathi Thirunal’s reputation as a patron of cultural activities attracted several musicians, dancers and writers from all parts of India to his court. Eraimman Thampi, often refereed as the court poet, was also a great musical composer. Many of the songs of Thampi have become immensely popular on account of their pleasing melody as well as their sweet language. Among the musical celebrities who adorned his court were four brothers Vadivelu, Sivanandam, Chinnaiah and Ponniah, all experts and exponents in several branches of music and dance. Vadivelu was one of the best musicians and dancers of his time. He had marvelous skill in playing the violin and Swati Thirunal was pleased to present him with an instrument made of ivory. Some people are of the opinion that Swati Thirunal used the works of the brothers and stamped it as his own, which is far from truth. Among the experts in instrumental music in Swathi Thirunal’s court was Ananthapadmanabha Goaswami, popularly known as Meruswami. Meruswami was a celebrity in the court of the Tanjore Raja, and he was a great exponent of Harikatha and Hindustani Music. Swati Thirunal sanctioned a handsome pension for him and permission for the free use of a palanquin.

Swati Thirunal’s appreciation of the Hindustani music was responsible for organizing a troupe of Hindustani artistes in the palace. There were in that troupe, three dancers and a Hindustani musical exponent, Allaudin from Mysore.

The art of Bharathanatyam attracted the special attention of the Swati Thirunal even from his childhood. Great exponents of that art like Nagaratnam of Srirangam, Pichu Bhagavather from Tanjore were invited to Thiruvananthapuaram for performances and they were generously rewarded.

Several dancers came from Tanjore in those days and settled down in Trivandrum getting due encouragement from the palace. Many noted musicians like Anantharaman and Mukundaraman of Mysore, Sivarama Sastrikal of Kalahasti, Lakshmana Das of Gwalior, Vellabarayar of Tanjore, Halavati an expert of Mohiniyattam fromTanjore and Parameshwara Bhagavathar of Palakkad were honored at the time of Swati Thirunal.

The patronage given by Swati Thirunal to music and the encouragement given to the musicians and artistes deserve the highest praise. His achievements are gratefully remembered, and his example will ever serve to inspire the world in the promotion of fine arts. His memory will forever be cherished as one of the greatest patrons of music and art in South India.

Swati Thirunal is no doubt a very liberal person as far as music is concerned. But when it came to the administration of the kingdom, he was a true, selfless and relentless king. He never excused anybody for any wrong done and strongly opposed nepotism.

The first act of the Swati Thirunal as the Maharaja was to shift the Secretariat and other public offices from Kollam to Thiruvananthapuram with a view to secure more effective control in the discharge of official business. He also devoted personal attention in the transaction of important affairs of State and kept a tight vigil over the progress in the various departments.

Reorganization and modernization of judiciary by the establishment of Munsiff courts, Zillah courts and an Appeal court at the capital was one of the early measures introduced by the Maharaja Swati Thirunal to improve the efficiency of judicial service in the state. The promulgation of a new code of regulations in 1835 on the British Indian model was another step in the same direction. He was a supremely self-respected man and never cared for the British Resident’s orders, which lead to many ugly episodes.

The Maharaja died at a young age of thirty-four. Many believe that his death is shrouded in mystery.  But the early death of the Maharaja was a irreparable loss to the music fraternity.