Cumbum,[1] natively enunciated as Kambam[note 1] (pronunciationⓘ), is a town in the Theni district of the state of Tamilnadu in India.

Cumbum Municipality (First Grade) is located in the Theni District of Tamil Nadu, near the Kerala State border.

Crops like Paddy, Coconut, Black Grapes, Groundnut and various kinds of fruits and vegetables are being cultivated in this area.

Sri Samandi Amman Temple is situated near village Samandipuram (Swamindipuram) which is 5 km by road, we can reach by car, Auto's and Buses.

The major source of water for drinking and agriculture comes from the Periyar River which flows Diverted from the state of Kerala.

An article in the newspaper Dinamalar recounted the temple's origins: "A king ruling this region then desired to build a temple for Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu in a single premises, Perumal appeared in his dream and said that there was a stone post at the foot hills of western ghats and that His idol was there.

As the Lord was found under a stone post (Cumbam), He was named Kambaraya Perumal and the place Cumbum.

The people of Cumbum and nearby villages played a vital role in the construction of Mullai Periyar Dam.

When John Pennycuick decided to divert the west-flowing Periyar River eastward so that it could irrigate acres of dry land, the construction works were disrupted by relentless rain.

Since he could not get adequate funds from the British government, Pennycuick went to England and sold his property to raise the money.

Local landowners in Cumbum and Gudalur provided more money, along with manpower, to aid in the dam's construction.

Further, there were songs on Hakim Ajmal Khan, Pandit Motilal Nehru, C. R. Das, C. Rajagopalachari, Periyar E.V.R and Mattaparai Venkatramaier.