Telugu, Rhythm and Rap

 Turning the rhythm of his mother tongue into rap, Pranav Chaganty, better known as ‘Abhinavakavi,’ is taking Telugu from the pages of poetry books to the beats of hip-hop, transforming classical verses into rap flows, indie tracks and viral Instagram reels. He’s proving that Telugu isn’t just a language — it is rhythm and music, and it’s alive. “Telugu has all the qualities a language needs for rap: rhythm, sweetness and meaning,” he says. His latest release, Rage of Kaantha signals that this is more than music — it’s a movement.

Long before Pranav became a celebrated rapper and lyricist, he aspired to be a film composer, growing up immersed in the musical world. “I used to listen to all kinds of music, it was my foundation. Telugu people are lucky. We listen to Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam… there’s no real language barrier,” he says. Inspired by A.R. Rahman’s music in his school days, he would spend hours analysing background scores from films like Roja and Bombay, imagining melodies in his head and recording over 2,000 short clips on an old phone.

Coming from a lower-middle-class family, Pranav joined the Merchant Navy as an electrical engineer after completing his engineering. Life at sea, however, was far from easy for someone as family-oriented and sensitive as him. “Music was my only companion,” he says. “Out there, you can’t listen to new music, you’re cut off from family. I realised I was drifting. That’s when the sea gave me direction. I knew I had to return and do music full-time.”

After completing a music production course in Chennai and teaching students keyboard and guitar in Bangalore, the sailor-turned-rapper returned to Hyderabad to focus on his music career. Around 2012, when the Nirbhaya incident shook the nation, Pranav found himself deeply affected. “I couldn’t understand that kind of cruelty,” he says. “I just poured everything I felt into words. It wasn’t poetry at first, but when I wrote, I felt relief. That’s when I realised the power of words.” His early track Aavedhana, about acid attack survivors, remains one of his most personal works. “I never planned to sing, but as I kept writing what I felt, I eventually discovered rap, and through it, the beauty of the Telugu language.”

While Pranav has established himself as a lyricist, rapper, and indie musician—also contributing to films—his larger mission is to make Telugu accessible, modern, and culturally relevant. His viral Instagram reels reinterpret classics like Sri Sri’s Mahaprasthanam, connecting ancient Telugu rhythm to contemporary rap. “Sri Sri’s work is essentially a classic rap album. My perception of Vachana Kavithwam — free verse — is rap in our language,” he explains. His content has sparked renewed interest in Telugu among younger audiences. “People are rediscovering Telugu through my reels. That’s what keeps me going.”

Earlier, Telugu was often seen as complex - reserved for scholars and intellectuals. Pranav wanted to change that, to make it welcoming and relatable. Through reinterpreting literary classics, blending modern themes, and infusing rhythm into poetry, he’s bringing Telugu hip-hop to a wider audience across India and beyond.

Looking ahead, he dreams of building a full-fledged Telugu cultural movement, complete with music, merchandise, education, and artist mentorship. “Telugu is not just a language to me anymore; it’s a way of life,” he says. “Hip-hop is the bridge — it connects people, opens minds, and reveals the rhythm of our words. I have a few plans around this idea, and some exciting collaborations in the works that I’ll share soon.”