NIZAMABAD : Ahead of the World Telugu Conference (WTC) to be held in the state capital from December 15 to December 19, lovers of the Telugu language and literature are eagerly waiting to see whether the state government will announce the Adi Kavi of Kannada language, Pampadu, also known as Pampa, who was a Telugu man, as the real first Telugu poet. Till now, it has been assumed that Nannaya, who lived in the 11th century, is the earliest author in the Telugu language. But, a poem carved on a rock found on an ancient hillock, Bommallamma Gutta at Kurikyala in Karimnagar district and dating back to 947 AD, helped the state government fight for and win classical language status to Telugu language last year during a legal battle.
The inscription was written by Kannada poet Pampa and his brother Jeenavallabha in three languages. Therefore, many are curious to know whether the Telangana government will, during the Telugu Mahasabhalu, announce Pampa as the first poet in the Telugu language. According to available evidences, Pampa belonged to the 10th century. His original name was Padamakarudu. He lived between 902 and 975 AD and wrote Puranas in Kannada and translated the Mahabharata into Kannada as Vikramarujuna Vijayam. Pampa had penned several works in Telugu before the advent of Nannaya.
He lived during the rule of Chalukya kings who ruled the region with Bodhan and Vemulawada towns as their capital cities.Meanwhile, the samadhi of Pampa in Bodhan town in Nizamabad district, is in dire neglect. The tomb, located atop a hillock very near the bus stand at Basavataraka Nagar, is in a totally damaged condition. Some of the stones are preserved in a museum in Nizamabad. One of the stones was kept by a local resident in front of his residence.
“The state government is celebrating the World Telugu Conference in the state capital on a grand scale. It should take steps to develop the Pampa Samadhi as a tourist spot,” A Raghava Rao, a local teacher, demanded.Pampa Sahitya Peetham president K Ajay Kumar told Express that their organisation, which was set up in 2009, was now concentrating on Pampa works. They urged government departments to take steps to protect the Pampa Samadhi which is now “totally covered by bushes”.
Nizamabad district in-charge collector A Ravinder Reddy said a proposal to develop Pampa Samadhi was under the consideration of the government. “Due to staff crunch, tourism, language and culture departments are unable to take a speedy decision but the district administration is committed to developing Pampa Samadhi as a beautiful memorial park,” he added.
Pampadu was born in Guntur district
Pampadu, Pampana or Pampa was born at Vangiparru in Guntur district of the present-day Andhra Pradesh and migrated to seek royal patronage under Vemulavada Chalukya King Arikesari in Vemulavada in the present-day Telangana State.
He died near the present-day Bodhan in Nizamabad district. His samadhi is at Basavataraka Nagar in Bodhan. Till the 15th century, Telugu and Kannada shared the same script. That is why some of the books written by Pampa are considered to be of Kannada origin.