At 86, Ravuri Bharadwaja says that if there is one lesson that he learnt from his life-long career as a writer, then that is to: “Never write to convince one set of audience. Always write what you see.” Comparing the Telugu literature scene from his time and now, the city-based author is quite upset about the fact that the younger generation is not that thrilled about studying Telugu literature anymore.
“Interest in Telugu literature is something that is lacking among youngsters today. Though, there is a lot of good work that is getting printed, it is all customised and in sync with the contemporary scene. The format of novels, poems, stories and even prose is changing at a fast pace,” he says and adds, “Not just this, literature even in movie scripts, songs and cinema storyboard is experiencing a complete novel treatment. A lot of things are repetitive everywhere and culturally are not very relatable. Telugu literature is definitely taking a backstep in this area.”
He was recently bestowed upon the Jnanpith Award for 2012 for his book Paakudu Raalu (slippery stones), that focused on the unhappy lives of several South Indian actresses during 60s and 70s.
“My career as a film journalist was full of conversations with new people everyday. I got introduced to many stars and in the course of this, I learnt a lot about the industry, situations and more. What started off as conversations, went on to becoming stories. I wrote without any hypocrisy,” he says. Bharadwaja then goes on, “I thought I would make these small conversations as a base and write a story, which was about 40 pages. Then I asked a friend to read through it, who then told me that it was an 800 word page book that was written in just 30 pages and the characters lacked depth. I took these tips, came to Hyderabad and then compiled it into a series.”
Ask him why he chose the name, he replies, “The name Paakudu Raalu was chosen by Seela Veerraju, a famous writer. Back then, he was working in the Krishna Patrika office and he suggested the name.” The subject of the book, however has a strong relevance even today. “We published my book in 1961 and now the fifth edition is coming out. Even after all these years, the cine field will still remain the same.”
Bharadwaja did face his share of criticism for the subject that was in focus in Pakudu Raalu. “There were a lot of efforts made to stop it and some even wanted to ban it. But nothing worked out, as when I know I am right in my place, why should I stop it. And the publisher believed in me.”
Ravuri Bharadwaja is the third writer to receive the Jnanpith award after Vishwanatha Satyanarayana and C Narayana Reddy. “I am immensely happy. I never dreamt that I will be a recipient of this award. There are no words to express.” One of his stories, Karimingina Velagapandu was adapted into a movie by MS Reddy, which was released as O Premakatha. However, Bharadwaja says he has not been approached by any director or producer to make Pakudu Raalu into a film. “No one has approached me yet, but if they will, I will only agree if I don’t have to make any changes in the script.”
