VIZIANAGARAM: The historic 150-year-old residence of legendary Telugu poet, playwright, and social reformer Gurajada Apparao in Vizianagaram is set to get a major facelift as Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan assured to modernise the ancestral home and construct a state-of-the-art auditorium in the adjacent vacant land with an estimated cost of Rs 1.20 crore.
The State government has already initiated the renovation of the 150-year-old house with an estimated cost of `12.05 lakh and the Department of Archaeology has started the digitisation of Gurajada Apparao’s writings to make his works accessible to future generations.
A Government Order (GO) regarding the construction of the state-of-the-art auditorium is expected to be released within couple of days, drawing widespread appreciation from literary enthusiasts and residents.
Gurajada Venkata Apparao was a noted Indian playwright, dramatist, poet, and writer known for his works in Telugu theatre.
He wrote the play ‘Kanyasulkam’ in 1892, which was considered the greatest play in the Telugu language. Though born in the Visakhapatnam district, Gurajada Apparao settled in Vizianagaram and became synonymous with the city’s cultural identity.
Following his passing in 1915, priceless personal artefacts including his spectacles, a rubber stamp, a brass knife, a Rangoon teak table, two chairs, and three imported oil paintings remain at the Vizianagaram residence.
Though State government sanctioned `15 lakh for the conversion of the heritage building into a museum during the cultural festival held in Vizianagaram in 2012, there is no use. Later, the TDP-led NDA coalition government declared the residence of Gurajada Appa Rao as a protected monument as it has archaeological and historical importance.
The Archaeology Department took over the structure in 2015 recognising its historical significance.
While the previous government renovated two rooms, the remaining six rooms were left untouched and fell into disrepair.
Currently, a small library operates out of a lower room in the house, managed by Gurajada’s great-grandson, Venkateswara Prasad along with his wife Indira, who was appointed by the Zilla Parishad on an outsourcing basis. The site has also suffered from a lack of sanitation, with a garbage dump nearby causing severe inconvenience to students visiting the library.
Drunkards and thieves entered into Gurajada’s house through the adjacent vacant land and destroyed the books and other furniture in the recent times. Therefore, the government of Andhra Pradesh initiated the renovation of the 150-year-old house.
In the meanwhile, several Janasena leaders had brought the dilapidated state of the heritage site to Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan’s attention during a Janasena meeting in Visakhapatnam in August 2025. Pawan Kalyan vowed to restore the building and digitise Gurajada’s writings. He has taken the steps to give the facelift to the monument.