 Born into an Ambalavasi family on 16 February 1916, Poduval had his schooling till the fifth standard and moved on to practice the idakka and the chenda.He inherited the art of playing the edakka from his uncle, Njeralathu Karunakara Pothuval, and went on to establish an indelible mark in this field.He also practiced instruments like the veena from Parappanaatu Rama Kuruppu.