Karaikudi is the biggest City in Sivaganga district and is known as the capital of Chettinad. The Chettinad region in the Sivaganga district of Southern Tamil Nadu encompasses Karaikudi, and 74 other neighbouring villages. The mansions in this region are quite ornate and different in their architecture.
An example of this type of architecture can be observed at Chettinad palace in Karaikudi. The palace is embellished with marble and Burma teak; it has a wide courtyard, spacious rooms, and a pillared hall where the pillars are carved out of entire tree trunks. Other features are elaborate marble floors, carved wooden beams, and decorative features that highlight the skill of the Tamil craftsmen.
The Chettinad houses are built on a rectangular, traversal plot that stretches across two streets, with the front door opening into the first street and the back into the second. Looking in from the main threshold, your eye travels in a straight line across a series of inner courtyards, each a diminishing rectangle of light, leading out to the back door. Most of the houses consist of thousands of windows, hundreds of wooden pillars, and door frames intricately carved with representations of Gajalakshmi who symbolizes the Goddess of wealth. A Kumbam (brass pot) with sprouting leaves engraved on it near the door also symbolizes wealth. The houses are definitely worth a visit.
The Chettiar families that built these mansions were astute businessmen who migrated to South and Southeast Asia, particularly Ceylon and Burma in the 19th and early 20th centuries. They made their fortunes which enabled them to build mansions that reflected their social status. Today the houses are often unoccupied as families have moved to other places for work.
The Pillaiyarpati Temple in Karaikudi dates back to the 7th Century and can also be visited. It is dedicated to Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles who is a most auspicious and popular deity.Chettinad is famous for its hot and spicy non-vegetarian cuisine. One of the most popular dishes is pepper chicken. The food here is prepared in copper pots and served on plantain leaves .