Month: November 2020

Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao:

GMR Group holds a special position in the business fraternity. It is a global infrastructure developer and operator , active in 7 countries. The man behind the most talked about GMR group is Grandhi Mallikarjun Rao who is a mechanical engineer and a billionaire industrialist.

Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao Biography:

Born on 14 July,1950 in Rajam, Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, he grew up gathering business knowledge from his family commodities trading. Though he started working as a junior engineer for the Andhra Pradesh government, he was fascinated towards business and stepped his foot into commodities training.

Soon he was able to establish connections with a good number of suppliers and customers. After a few years of successful trading he started a bank named Vysya Bank in partnership with ING.Eventually, Rao sold his stake of 340 crores and invested the same to create the super successful GMR group.

Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao Lifestyle:

What makes Grandhi Mallikarjun Rao stand out is its humility. Despite his bewitching success, he hasn’t forgotten his roots. With Warren Buffet as his inspiration, Rao believes in ‘giving back to society’. He has a CSR wing called GMR Varalakshmi Foundation which serves the underprivileged and works towards their upliftment.

In 2012, he gave away Rs 1540 crores for charitable purposes and became the third most magnanimous owner of corporate India by donating Rs.740 crores.

For his exemplary work in the social work field and entrepreneurship he has been conferred with several awards by the state and the nation, besides being awarded the Honorary Doctors by York University of Toronto, Canada in 2011. Grandhi Mallikarjun Rao, a stalwart in the corporate sector, will forever stand tall as the epitome of humanitarian entrepreneurship.

Kodi Rammurthy Naidu:

A rebel teenager, fickle minded, completely unfocussed in studies, goes ahead to earn the title of ‘Indian Hercules’ for his surprising feats in the field of physical strength. Yes, we are talking about Kodi Rama Murty, the great pehelwan who blessed the land of Veeraghattam, Srikakulam in April 1882. 

Kodi Rammurthy Biography:

Kodi Rammurthy Journey:

Ramamurthy was asked to shake hands with ‘kusti’ at a local gym in Vizianagaram, his uncle’s place where he was sent to continue his education. His skills were impressive and to polish them he was sent to a professional fitness centre in Madras. That was where he transformed into an undisputed wrestler and took up the job of a fitness instructor in a college. 

His expertise in Vayu Stambhana( air resistance) and Jala Stambhana( water resistance) became the cause of his popularity. In 1911, he started with public shows, leaving people and government officials gaping at his unbelievable feats. His performance at a National Congress Meeting, impressed Madan Mohan Malvya and opened an avenue for him to perform in front of the king of England.

Kodi Rammurthy Achievements:

In England, his brawn and skills mesmerized King George V. When he balanced an elephant for about 5 minutes on his chest, the king was overwhelmed and rewarded him the title of ‘Indian Hercules.’

Kodi Ramamurthy had even undergone extensive knee surgery without anaesthesia. This godly strength could be achieved by him through yoga from which he attained complete control over his mind and body. Though a less talked about name in the family of Indian athletes, India is yet to produce another Kodi Rama Murthy.

Garimella Satyanarayana:

Garimella Satyanarayana was a star from Srikakulam, who shone bright, yet couldn’t be noticed by many. He used his pen as a weapon of high efficacy to slay the subservience of Telugus to the British imperialist. As a pioneer of freedom struggle from Srikakulam, he got extremely revered in the contemporary fighter’s circle, yet couldn’t get his popularity to flow to the subsequent generation of politicians.

Garimella Satyanarayana Biography:

Garimella Satyanarayana was born on 14th July 1893  in Gonepadu village, in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh to a poor Brahmin family. He completed his education across three regions, Vizianagaram, Rajamahendravaram and Machilipatnam. Later, Ganjam became his professional abode where he worked as a teacher and a clerk in the collector’s office.

Garimella Satyanarayana Journey:

The oppression of the British rule infuriated him and he gave up his job to join the civil disobedience movement. But being a learned man, words were his power. Garimella Satyanarayana went on composing poems and songs which seeped through the conscience of the fellow Indians and planted the seed of stringent opposition to the British rule.

One of his most famous songs “ Maakoddee tella doratanamu” which translates to “We do not want this White Man’s rule” suffused in every corner of the country. Fearful of the following instigation, the Britishers pushed him behind the bars in 1922. But the rigorous imprisonment did not enfeeble his spirit. He continued composing songs with fervent messages of nationalism. Despite getting imprisoned for a number of times and losing his entire family, he rose in the eyes of the nation for placing her ahead of all and continuing the struggle.

However, the politicians of free India failed to acknowledge the undeterred struggle and contribution of this great man. Without any support, his financial status plummeted and out of poverty, he left for his heavenly abode on 18th December 1952 in a miserable health condition.

One who moulded an entire generation towards achieving a goal couldn’t unfortunately mould another towards him. Post-Independent India will always remember this unsung hero yet cannot shed the guilt of letting this man have a lamentable end who played a great role in its emancipation.

Gidugu Venkata Ramamurthy:

Gidugu Venkata Ramamurthy was a linguist, writer and a revolutionary whose vision was way ahead of the times. His knowledge came as a blessing to the common man who could take the pleasure of emotions through literature owing to its simplification. 

Ramamurthy’s childhood was bereft of joy and comfort. Born in Parvatalapeta, Srikakulam, he lost his father at the tender age of 12. Survival was a burden. The emotional and financial baggage was weighing him down.

Amidst all struggles, he continued his education. At his sister’s place, he studied privately and passed matriculation. Following that, he began his professional career as a teacher in Gajapati Maharaja School and continued teaching for 55 years. 

Gidugu Venkata Ramamurthy in Telugu:

Gidugu was a pedagogue and historian. His penchant for language made him reach the roots of it and understand the philosophy of language. But he was utterly distressed by the esoteric nature of the Telugu Language. Let alone a common man, even he, as a linguist, couldn’t read the ‘sasanas’ and had to read a number of imported books to comprehend it thoroughly. 

This made him launch a movement to simplify Telugu language and transform it into vyavharik bhasa (medium of communication) in schools and colleges. He even worked dedicatedly towards extending the reach of the language to the Savaras, a tribal community thriving on the borders of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. He prepared lexicons which became extremely popular.

Gidugu Venkata Ramamurthy’s unwavering spirit to bring about a revolution in the arena of language, gradually diluted the opposition of the orthodox sanskrit scholars and paved the way for the acceptance of the common spoken language as the medium of education.

Gidugu Venkata Ramamurthy’s unflinching determination earned him the nickname of Pidugu(thunderbolt) and a permanent space on the page of Indian history.