Who was Gurajada Apparao? Telugu poet & playwright quoted by FM Nirmala Sitharaman in Budget 2025 speech

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, portion delivering her eighth consecutive Budget code for the fiscal twelvemonth 2025-26 (FY26), invoked the iconic Telugu writer and playwright Gurajada Apparao by quoting his celebrated lines: “Desamante matti kaadoyi, Desamante manushuloyi.” This translates to, “A state is not conscionable its soil, a state is its people.” 

She utilized this punctuation to underscore the government’s imaginativeness for Viksit Bharat (Developed India), which includes eradicating poverty, ensuring prime acquisition for all, providing entree to affordable healthcare, achieving a afloat skilled workforce with meaningful employment, expanding women's workforce information to 70 per cent, and positioning India arsenic "the nutrient handbasket of the world."

Who was Gurajada Apparao? Take a look astatine his singular legacy...

Gurajada Apparao was calved connected September 21, 1862, into a Hindu household of the Niyogi Brahmin caste. His commencement took spot astatine his maternal uncle’s location successful Rayavaram village, adjacent Yelamanchili successful Anakapalli district, Andhra Pradesh. 

A versatile literate figure, Apparao made important contributions arsenic a playwright, dramatist, poet, and writer, peculiarly successful the Telugu language. He is renowned for his enactment successful Telugu theatre and his heavy power connected Indian lit and culture. 

Literary and world contributions

One of his astir celebrated works was the play Kanyasulkam (1892), wide regarded arsenic the top play successful the Telugu language. This play exposed the societal evils of kid matrimony and the dowry system, sparking much-needed nationalist sermon connected these issues. Kanyasulkam became 1 of the foundational works of modern Telugu theatre and remains applicable to this day. In 1955, it was adapted into a movie starring the legendary NT Rama Rao, erstwhile Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.

Apart from this, Apparao wrote galore poems and plays that had a lasting impact. In 1910, helium penned the fashionable Telugu patriotic opus "Desamunu Preminchumanna," which further cemented his relation arsenic a patriotic dependable successful Indian literature.

A beingness clip legacy

Apparao's contributions were recognised by some the literate and world communities. In 1897, Kanyasulkam was published by Vavilla Ramaswamy Sastrulu and Sons successful Madras and was dedicated to Maharaja Ananda Gajapati. Apparao’s power extended beyond his contiguous works arsenic helium was appointed arsenic the Epigraphist to the Maharaja of Vizianagaram successful 1891. 

His works were besides well-received successful English literate circles, specified arsenic his epic Sarangadhara, published successful Indian Leisure Hour. This garnered appreciation some successful India and abroad, with re-publication successful the *Rees and Ryot* mag by Sambhu Chandra Mukherji.

Apparao was appointed to the Board of Studies astatine Madras University successful 1911, and successful 1913, helium was awarded the rubric of ‘Emeritus Fellow,’ recognising his immense contributions to lit and societal reform.

Gurajada Apparao passed distant connected 30th November 1915 conscionable astatine the property of 53. Despite his untimely death, his bequest continues to thrive. He is fondly remembered arsenic 1 of the pioneering figures successful Indian theatre and literature, and his works stay applicable successful the ongoing combat for societal justness and equality.