Ravi Varma was too incompetent to play any serious political role and hence his role only was nominal. Pazhassi Raja become the most powerful figure in Kottayam, much to the chagrin of his uncle Vira Varma. Hence Vira Varma played a series of power games aiming to check the growing clout of his nephew. So the relation between Vira Varma and Pazhassi Raja was one of enmity right from the onset. The military situation was grim for Pazhassi Raja and his troops – in 1774, Coorgs had joined hands with Hyder Ali on the promise of being gifted Wynad and a large Coorg army camped in Wynad to help Mysore troops. In 1776, Hyder Ali re-installed the Hindu Raja in Chirakkal and the latter joined Mysore war effort to crush Pazhassi Raja. This triple alliance which lasted till 1780 reached nowhere near defeating the Kottayam army. During his long war with the Mysore and then the East India Company, Pazhassi Raja increased his sphere of influence significantly eastwards as far as the outskirts of Mysore. His men regularly looted enemy treasuries and sandalwood from southern Karnataka and his enemies could do little to check these raids. This enabled him to lay claim on a great chunk of the Mysore district – as far as Nanjangod in the east. Also, Pazhassi Raja and his men frequently raided the domains of neighbouring Rajas in northern Malabar and Coorg to harass the enemy regiments posted there and he was often supported by local population of those territories. Along with this, he had close ties with Ravi Varma and Krishna Varma, who were princes of Calicut and popular rebel leaders of southern Malabar. Siege of Thalasseri Thalasseri or Tellicherry in the late 18th century was a harbour-fort which was held by the East India Company as a factory. The value of Tellicherry as a naval base meant that her capture could seriously impact the situation of the Bombay Marine on the west coast. Also rebels in North Malabar bought arms and ammunition from the East India Company in Tellicherry. So if Hyder could capture this fort, he could, at a stroke, cripple both the rebels in North Malabar as well as Company rule in India at a regional basis. So in 1778, Hyder's vassal, the Raja of Chirakkal, besieged Thalasseri and enforced an economic blockade under order from Hyder himself. The East India Company