KHAMMAM: Thirty-two-year-old Modugu Govinda Rao, popularly known as Govind, has managed to earn the widespread admiration of music lovers and the respect of his peers despite struggling for a major part of his life. Originally a folk and devotional singer, he learnt to be a lyricist quite early in his teenage years and became an anchor recently.
Belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community and from a family with a poor financial background, Govind, a native of Paladugu village in Wyra mandal of Khammam district, is used to hardships. After finishing his Intermediate, he wanted to pursue Bachelor of Arts (English Literature), but his dream was cut short when he was forced to drop out due to his family’s poor financial condition.
However, that didn’t keep him from following his passion. Speaking to TNIE, Govind says that he was enticed by music and performances when he was a Class 8 student. He mentions that folk songs and dances were part of regular celebrations and that he was inspired by his late father, Modugu Basavaiah, who was a cobbler but would perform street dramas and devotional songs.
As a teenager, he believed in the age-old adage of ‘imitation is the best form of flattery’ and tried copying his father. In the process, he started writing poems, folk and devotional songs. Till now, he has written 350 poems and composed 300 songs, apart from creating many albums of folk and devotional songs.
People around him are in awe of his talents and the range of skills that he has developed over the years. However, they point to the time when he was 14 and wrote a poem on child labour, which garnered appreciation from his schoolteachers, neighbours and fellow students alike.
This was possibly the first time that people noticed the flash of brilliance in young Govind, says Bukka Satyanarayana, a retired revenue inspector. He mentions that Govind had multiple talents even as a child and has received many awards, including ones from director and producer R Narayana Murthy, ghazal artist Gajal Srinivas and famous poet Nandini Sidda Reddy, among others. “A talent like him is rare anywhere in the world. He can produce a song or poem at a moment’s notice,” Satyanarayana adds.
Till now, he has received 12 awards from the government and different private organisations and has performed in over 1,000 programmes across the Telugu states.
Need for support
Despite the once-in-a-lifetime talent that he is, Govind continues to struggle financially. He has started working as a farm labourer to support his 85-year-old mother and wife. While mentioning that he trying to break into the Tollywood industry, he says he is confident that he can make it big if given a chance to showcase his talents.