Ambalapuzha is a taluk in Alappuzha district, some 10 kilometres away from the district headquarters. This was the capital of the Chambakasseri kings. In AD 1754, Divan Ramayya attached this Taluk to Travancore. Ambalapuzha temple, its office, staff quarters, guest rooms, elephant yard, bathing pond etc. are spanned over to 40 acres of land. There are demi-gods outside the sanctum sanatorium. The annual festivities in Ambalapuzha temple present an array of different art forms like Kathakali, Kooth, Koodiyattam, Ottam thullal, classical concerts, etc. This temple is popular because of the ‘palpaysam’, a pudding offered to the Lord. The myth behind this palpaysam is like this: Once more the king of Chembakasery took a loan of 150 tons of paddy from an alien Brahmin to meet the expense of his army. The king could not repay this debt for some time. The principal, interest and cumulative interest added up to a very huge sum. It was simultaneously that the King’s treasury became bankrupt and the Brahmin insisted on the repayment. One morning as the King was proceeding to worship, the old Brahmin encountered him: “Oh King, keeping God as a witness, you shall not enter the inner precincts of the temple without first making my payment”. The king was puzzled. The minister in no seconds arranged from all sources, the entire paddy needed for the repayment and heaped it before the Brahmin and ordered him to remove it instantly. The Brahmin was very happy and was in amazement. He could find no device to remove such a huge mountain of paddy. He apologized and entreated to grant time. This was refused. The Brahmin kept a handful of paddies and the receipt on the threshold of the sanctum and requested to prepare palpayasam daily as an offering to God with the huge resource. The great poet Kunchan Nambiar spent a major part of his life, including the last, worshipping Lord Krishna here.  There is a memorial dedicated to the late poet who invented ‘Thullal’, a major art form of Kerala’s own heritage. Kunchan’s poems stand apart in the literature for their style, lyricism, humour, satire, reformative ideas, and profound philosophy - all through puranic stories and characters. There was not a single section of bureaucracy that was not subjected to his scathing attack. The instance that prompted Nambiar to compose Thullal - over 100 stories altogether - is very interesting.  It was the duty of the Nambiar Community to give instrumental support like Mizhavu, a huge Tabla-like instrument, during the discourse of Koothu by Chakyar.  During one such performance, Nambiar had a mild nap, which Chakyar noticed and criticized in situ. The insulted Nambiar composed a new form of art ‘Thullal’, unique in cosmetics and appearance blending stories and episodes from Puranas in mellifluous lyrics and dance over a single night.  The next day as Chakyar started his koothu, there appeared opposite to his stage, a new stage, where the new art Thullal was launched. All the assemblage, en masse, fled to enjoy the new art deserting Chakyar. The Mizhavu which our beloved poet played is exhibited on a podium on the western side of the temple.