It is nothing less than an audacious attempt aided by stupidity for a person educated in English medium with no strong grip on Telugu language to write about Kavi Samrat Viswanatha Satyanarayana. Around 50 years back - in 1970, Viswanatha Satyanarayana became the first Telugu writer to receive the Jnanpith Award.
Telugu literature had its ups and downs, one of the lowest periods for Telugu language and literature was when parts of Telugu Desam was pillaged by Islamic invasions headed by Malik Kafur followed by barbarous rule imposed by chieftains of Delhi Sultanate. Telugu literature had a revival during the Vijayanagara Empire and later it was able to crawl on its own legs, but its prominence dwindled.
There were many writers and poets whose endeavors made sure that Telugu language and literature isn’t lost in time, but for some strange reason many are willing to give the entire credit to the revival of Telugu language to the British official, Charles Philip Brown. I have no intention to diminish the contributions of Charles Philip Brown but snubbing the works of other people is not affable.
Artists seem to be arrogant on the periphery for the common man, many Telugu writers have faced this criticism. Sri Sri once said “20 శతాబ్దం నాది” (20th Century belongs to me), Gudipati Venkata Chalam – popularly known as “Chalam” was known for his liberal and provocative sexual references in his works without any consideration for the reader. Viswanatha Satyanarayana was also known for brisk rebuttals on other writers and poets when his works and ideology were attacked.
Even before the 1960s when the Left could grab power in Academia and related areas, writers who did not embrace the Marxist ideology were targeted in various ways. Viswanatha Satyanarayana faced resistance from the Left for quite some time, he claimed that the Left are not the real rebels, it is he who is the real rebel as he is rebelling against the Left writers who claimed themselves as rebellious and revolutionaries but are only parroting the Marxists who wield the power in literary circles by stifling others.
The “Cancel Culture” was not a new phenomenon for Telugu writers who did not embrace Communism, they were blocked and restricted in many ways. Detractors of Viswanatha Satyanarayana used to brand his works as elite and they could not be easily understood by the common people. A subtle fence was erected by the Leftist intelligentsia whereby the students and upcoming writers did not have easy access to the works of Viswanatha Satyanarayana.
In the plethora of brilliant works, Viswanatha Satyanarayana is popular for his novel Veyi Padagalu (Thousand Hoods), which is translated into Hindi by former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao by the title “Sahasra Phan”, translated into Gujarati by Chandrakant Mehta/Mahendra Dhave and translated into Kannada by RVS Sundaram.
“Veyi Padagalu” was conceived when Viswanatha Satyanarayana was jobless due to differences over his views on religion at Guntur Christian college. In 1934, Andhra University advertised 1000 rupees prize for a Telugu novel which reflects Telugu culture and traditions. Viswanatha Satyanarayana dictated the story of lives of people from various Varnas and castes living in a village named Subbannapeta spanning many generations to his younger brother Venkateswarlu who wrote it down in 29 days in 999 papers.
“Veyi Padagalu” shows the relationship between different Varnas and castes, how Devadasis are looked down today but were once seen as people who were close to God, being close to nature and environment. It takes an in-depth look at poverty entangled with family relations and humiliations and emphasizes marriage as a pivotal institution.
Padmabhushan Viswanatha Satyanarayana didn’t mince words to support Sanatana Dharma, Bharatiya culture and traditions, and his views on Varna system are very well articulated in his works.
Left tried to portray famous Telugu writers and poets as their own and did not allow others to become famous. Like George Orwell, Sri Sri was inclined to Left ideology due to the Spanish revolution and it is very much visible in his works, but we hardly hear that Sri Sri was also influenced and inspired from the Indian epics Mahabharata and Ramayana.
Viswanatha Satyanarayana made an incisive point on Chalam and his piggybackers - “I admire him, his works, he writes very well on sexual differences. He is well versed in Telugu language; his works have originality unlike some others who do not have any original thoughts. There are people who want to project him only for his sexually provocative works and refusing to admit the fact that he eventually joined Ramana Maharshi’s ashram”.
Even during the peak phase of Maoist and Naxalite movements in Telugu Desam, where Left terrorist organizations infiltrated universities and poisoned young minds, the works of Viswanatha Satyanarayana and others survived and flourished for a period. I may be exaggerating a bit, but it is the Telugu movie lyricists who are somehow still carrying the mainstream baton of Telugu literature as the book publishing industry which is nothing less than a mafia does not have the inclination nor the responsibility to foster true talent.
Telugu writers have given direction for Telugu literature, now it is time for Telugu people to give Telugu literature a direction by reading and promoting the works of Viswanatha Satyanarayana and others.
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