Malamakkavu Ayyappa Temple

Malamakkavu Ayyappa Temple in Anakkara panchayat is one of the 108 Ayyappan temples of Kerala. Despite a name meaning a shrine on a hilltop, it sits fairly low in the landscape. Legend says a Cherumi couple grazing livestock struck a rock with a sickle and saw it bleed, and the deity was then installed in a sanctum; written records prove it has stood for over 300 years. The east-facing Ayyappan is joined by Bhagavathi and Shiva, and the Padinjarepat Nambiar family owns and runs it.

The temple pond, east of the shrine, is the only place the Chengazhinir flower, or neelathamara, used in offerings is said to grow, and devotees believe it blooms the day after a sincere prayer. That belief is central to the film Neelathamara, based on a story by M. T. Vasudevan Nair, who went to primary school in Malamakkavu; shooting inside the temple was not permitted. Thalapoli, the festival, falls on the last Saturday of Dhanu, and the area is known for Thayambaka drumming.