Question

What was chief of the Kudi called?
A. Senapati
B. Kulapati
C. Kudipathi
D. Mukhia

Answer 1

Hint: Kudi is of Dravidian origin meaning house or hut which means a term often used in South India. A Kudipathi had the right to control only his community as in a Kudi the people of the same caste used to live.

Complete answer:
The Muthuvan settlement is called a Kudi. A Dravidian origin word, Kudi means a house or hunt. The caste hierarchy is more precisely defined on the Malabar Coast than anywhere in India and according to this, the house of a Chaliar or weaver is called a Kudi.
While talking about the contemporary time, the kudi refers to the houses of many people other than the weavers. Kudi is also used to refer to a tribal settlement and the people are referred to as Kudikal, meaning servants or slaves.
The Muthuvan Kudi consisted of a small community of around seven or eight families or as many as twenty to twenty two families. The Muthuvan family is very much different from the traditional Indian family. The chief of the Kudi is called Kudipathi.
While talking about the other options,
A. Whereas the title of Senapati was used in the Maratha Empire. In ancient India, it denoted the rank of military commander or general of the army and it was the hereditary title of the nobility.
B. Kulapati is used to refer to the head person of the family. The head of the Gurukal was also called Kulapati in ancient India.
D. A decision maker who is elected by the village-level constitutional body called Gram Sabha is known as Mukhia. The Mukhia works as the focal point of contact between the government and the village community.

Thus the correct option is C.

Note: The Kudi and the traditional Indian villages were different in nature. In Indian villages different castes used to live together in specified degrees of separation. On the other hand, the Kudi is a cluster of dwellings of people of the same caste or community.