Vallal Sadaiyappa Mudaliar was a rich 12th century Vellala

Vellala

Vellala is a small village in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is near the town of Proddutur in the Kadapa District.The village got its name from the locally famous "Vellala sanjevaraswami ", a temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman....

 chief (a small village in modern-day India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

) who had his residence at both Puduvai (Pondicherry) and Thiruvenainallur. He was known for his philanthropic

Philanthropy

Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...

 activities. He was a close friend and a patron of Tamil

Tamil people

Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...

 National Poet Kambar who wrote Kamba Ramayanam also known as Ramavataram; he was also associated closely with Pararajasingam, the King of Kandy, Ceylon.

Patronage of Kambar

Kambar had a number of patrons but Sadaiyappan was foremost among them. Sadaiyappan attended the wedding of Kambar's son; according to one story, on seeing that all the seats were taken, took an unassuming position standing on the side of the ceremony. Kambar, in gratitude for Sadaiyappan's patronage and forbearance, lauded Sadaiyappan every 1000 stanzas in the Tamil

Tamil language

Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...

 epic Kamba Ramayanam.
According to tradition, Kambar's son, Ambikapathi was later put to death for having fallen in love with the Chola King's daughter and Kambar himself had to flee. In his old age, he was then supported and patronized by his friend Sadaiyappan.

King Pararajasingam

Sadaiyappa was also a close friend of King Pararajasingam of Kandy, Ceylon. When Kandy was hit by a famine

Famine

A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including crop failure, overpopulation, or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every continent in the world has...

, he immediately came to the aid of his friend by sending rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

 and other necessities in numerous ship

Ship

Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,...

s. He is praised for this event as thus (loosely translated):

See also

• Kongu Vellalar
  Kongu Vellalar
  Gounders also known as Kongu Vellalars are Kshatriyas native to the western region of Tamil Nadu known as Kongu Nadu. They were known as a noble, feudal and land owning caste of Tamil Nadu from the Sangam age...
  
  
• Thondaimandala Mudaliar