Krishnaraja Wodiyar III was the new ruler of the southern Indian kingdom of Mysore when Devajammani arrived at the royal court in 1805, to marry him. Both of them were 12 years of age.

According to Dr Nigel Chancellor, a historian at Cambridge University, "Devajammani soon found herself recruited for a more momentous cause - to publicise and promote the smallpox vaccine. And her unwitting role was captured in a painting commissioned by the East India Company to 'encourage participation in the vaccination programme'," the BBC reported.