Ande Sri: Voice That Wove Telangana’s Soul

Telangana's Prajakavi (people's poet) passed away last night after experiencing cardiac arrest in his Lalapet residence. He was rushed to the hospital and was undergoing treatment, but soon succumbed to the attack.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and other ministers have called his death "an irreparable loss to the literary and cultural world of Telangana," announcing that Ande Sri will be given a state funeral.

Who was Ande Sri?

On 18 July 1961, Ande Sri was born as Ande Yellaiah. He was an orphan, who never knew who his parents were or where he was from. His childhood was difficult, and worked odd jobs to get by.

Ande Sri worked as a shepherd for a brief period of time — this is when he began writing poetry.

Despite having no formal education, he became one of the prominent poets in Telangana. His simple language and heartfelt words struck a chord with the masses, resonating with the people of the state. To date, he has written over 3,000 poems. Kakatiya University even conferred an honorary doctorate upon him for his lyrical contributions.

Ande Sri played a significant role in the Telangana movement. His poems captured the aspirations of protestors and inspired the masses to rise and revolt for their statehood. The most notable of these is 'Jaya Jaya Hey Telangana,' which was later adopted as the official state anthem in 2024.

Earlier this year, the poet was awarded Rs. 1 crore for his literary and cultural contributions at the Telangana Formation Day celebrations. His passing is a tremendous loss to Telangana’s literary and cultural community.

The article has been authored by Tejasree Kallakrinda, an intern at Deccan Chronicle