Vijay Kumar has been instrumental in connecting people from across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to their roots. He is the man behind one of the largest Telugu publishing houses in the state over the last 20 years, Emesco Books. Over the years, his aim has only been to expose people, especially kids, to Telugu literature. He has also played a critical role in translating important works from English to Telugu and in several other Indian languages.
Vijay Kumar, who hails from West Godavari, has settled in Hyderabad since 1960. He says, “There are amazing writers in Telugu and people must be exposed to their works. Renowned Telugu writers such as Dr B.V. Pattabhi Ram, A.G. Krishnamurthy, Dr P.V.R.K. Prasad, Brahama Sri Chaganti Koteshwara Rao, Gurajada Venkata Apparao, Rajmohan Gandhi and Kovvali Laxminarasiha Rao among others have published their works with us. The Vedas, too, were translated into Telugu, so it can be easily accessible by the people here.”
He says that children must be exposed to Telugu literature at a young age. “There are a few Telugu books available in schools, but more books must be made available for children. Everybody assumes that globalisation is taking culture and tradition away, but I think people in this age want to connect with their roots even more than before. Parents and schools must make sure that kids are reading Telugu literature. The only way to get them interested is by making the books available at home and at schools; kids will automatically pick them up,” he says.
Talking about his plans for the future, Vijay adds, “I’m planning on publishing literature for children at a viable price. We’ve published a lot of autobiographies and I plan on publishing more. We can learn so much by reading about others lives.” Talking about his own interests, he adds, “I love reading and travelling. I travel alone and interact with people. I’m also a wood collector and have collected many wood carvings and crafts from places like Indonesia.”
