telugu, mana saMskriti (our culture)

Mana Sanskriti (Our Culture)

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Venkatasastri Ketavarapu (1879-1934)

Venkatasastri Ketavarapu was born in Poachanapeddi village near Narsiptnam in Vasakhapattanam district, in 1879 ("Pramadi" Telugu Year). His parents were Bucchamma and Ramaiah Ketavarapu. He attended schools in Poachapeddi before moving to Akiveedu for higher studies. He spent several years as a Telugu Pundit in Bobbili, Vijayanagaram, Visakhapattanam before serving as a Telugu teacher at Andhra University.

Ketavarapu was an essayist, novelist, critic and great orator and well-known in Visakhapattanam. He was a member of Andhra Sahitya Parishattu (Academy of Andhra Literature). Original novels and writings were not popular in Telugu literature during his period. Translations were the most popular and respected form of literature. Venkatasastri's publishers were apologetic for his originality and lack of any basis in English or Sanskrit for his writings! His first novel was saavitree parinayamu (1912). His service to literature includes works such as bhaagavatamu,rahasyabhedanamu, raajasumdari, aanamdaabaayi, raajyalakshmi, raayachooru yuddhamu, bobbili muttadi, poornaanamdamu, icchinikumari, lakshmee prasaadam, agrahaaramu, dilaaraama, saavitree parinayamu etc.

Venkatasastri married Ramayamma, the second daughter of Ramaiah Gudala of Lakkavaram village near Yalamanchili. The couple had three sons and two daughters.

Source: "naa vaangmaya mitrulu" by Kameswararao Tekumalla.