HYDERABAD: Renowned Telugu writer, Kendra Sahitya Academy Award winner and an ardent feminist, Abburi Chayadevi passed away at the age of 85 at an old age home in Hyderabad.
She breathed her last in the early hours of Friday, at the Home for the Aged in Kondapur in the city.
Originally from the East Godavari district, Chayadevi penned the classic Tana Margam in 2005 that bagged her the prestigious Kendra Sahitya Academy Award. The book was a collection of short stories based on the lives of middle-class women.
The mood of the stories clicked well with the masses that it was picked by Doordarshan in the same year for the telecast.
Chayadevi was known for exploring various themes of womanhood based on her first-hand experiences. For instance, as per the records in an archive in the Sahitya Academy website, her works like Anubandham (Bondage) discussed conflict situations and mundane life experiences during the post-independence era from a woman’s perspective.
Her other work, Vimarsakulu (Critics) explored the theme of marriage from the perspective of an unmarried college girl who is overwhelmed by the sacrifices she would have to make in the post-marital life.
Prayanam (Journey), another one of her classics, explored the theme of rape and it sent out a message to the women milieu not to perceive such an incident as a life-or-death situation and wanted them to move ahead and lead a normal life.
The themes that she discussed back then were considered way ahead of the time, maybe even now as women still face the burden of such dilemmas in their day to day lives.
She also wrote about her on and off the desire for an offspring.
The feminist author was also deeply involved with the literary feministic undercurrent in Hyderabad as she was linked with those like Volga and Vasanth Kannabiran.
Several of her contemporaries and those who were inspired by her expressed their grief over her demise.
The feminist writer, even after nearing death, continued to set an example for all and donated her eyes to the LV Prasad Eye Institute, meanwhile, her body was handed over to the ESI Medical College & Hospital.