Devasahayam Pilla was an upper-caste Hindu convert to Christianity. Born a Nair on 23 April 1712, he was a member of the royal service of the then ruler of Travancore, King Marthanda Varma. He embraced Catholicism in 1745 under the influence of Captain Eustace de Lannoy, the chief of the Travancore army. Baptized by Jesuit Father R. Bouttari Italus, he changed his name from Neelakanta Pilla to Lazar, in time coming to be popularly known as Devasahayam (God’s help). It was not long before his wife, Bhargavi Ammal, also became Catholic, taking the name Gnanapoo Ammal (Theresa), even as he freely practised and propagated his new-found Faith. This antagonized the upper-caste Hindus. Yet, he did not heed even to the command of Marthanda Varma – to whom he was known to be close – to return to the Hindu fold. He was therefore dismissed from service in 1749 and imprisoned. Charged with treason and espionage, his banishment to the Aralvaimozhy forest was marked with brutal torture, which included the rubbing of pepper into his wounds and his nostrils, being exposed to the sun and given only stagnant water to drink. He was shot to death on 14 January 1752. The tomb of this first ever Indian convert-martyr, located at Saint Francis Xavier Cathedral in Kottar, South India, attracts large number of people. Father J. Kottukapally, SJ demonstrates how Pilla’s life was a shining witness to the Faith, meriting the beatification that took place at Kottar on 3 December 2012, with Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints presiding.