Wednesday, January 7, 2026

My Words on Viswanatha Satyanarayana : Part 3 (English) విశ్వనాథ గురించి...

My Words on Viswanatha Satyanarayana
Part 3 

He opens one of those novels, describing the pitter patter of the mid-summer showers. He goes on saying that if you stay put, sleeping on the roof, thinking the rain would cease, it would make your covers wet. But if you get up and go down, it would cease even before you go into the house. With the same breath, He would explain a scheme of bringing irrigation waters to the parched lands in an innovative way. Pavani, his youngest son, recollected father’s discussions with Shri K.L. Rao, the irrigation expert, about the various ways of bringing water to the lands.  He was assiduously collecting material to be used at suitable places. Even if He takes up narration of an irrelevant subject during a story, it would equally sound interesting.  In one of those novels, perhaps ‘Samudrapudibba’ He writes of frogs that lay dried up during summer and come to life after rains and start their cacophonic orchestra! Whoever said He was unscientific? His observation was so keen. He boldly claimed that his writings contain all the knowledge that He collected from all over the world.

If He was old styled and against progress, he would not write novels like ‘Cheliyalikatta’ and ‘Terachi Raju’.  The ideas about human relations expressed through the characters in these novels are examples of His thought process. He was more progressive than the most progressive perhaps!

It’s interesting that He lived and taught in Karimnagar. He inquired and collected details about the mendicant tradition of Bavaji’s at Yelagandala Matham nearby. These Sadhus were great musicians. They had their own ways of music. Taking cue from this, He composed a novel under the title ‘Mroyu Tummeda’. This is perhaps one of his novels which go beyond the comprehension of readers who even sympathise with his style and subject. ‘Bhramaravasinividya’ a way of meditating on classical music and the associated Goddess that He explains in this novel, is worth a lot.

A mention must be made of the mystery novel ‘Puli mruggu’ that would make any writer of suspense thrillers go bonkers.  In this novel, a man keeps turning into a tiger. One cannot imagine what made Him pick up such a theme and write a sensational work. Pavani, tried bringing this novel in the usual language that appears in magazines of the present day. The experiment did not really give any good results. ‘Puli mruggu’ was approved to be made into a TV serial. It never happened. It could never happen perhaps. The imagination required and such skills to turn the story into a visual feat using lot of technical methods, is not at hand so easily. The present day graphic driven film people also may not come equal to the task.

Puranam Subramanya Sharma, writer and magazine editor says, that the orthodoxy and the stubborn belief in traditions in Him is perhaps a cover that He intentionally arranged for self. His humanism and love for life were no means lesser. He says VS was one of those who could not be an example of justified combination of old and new during the times when new values, new beliefs and new ways of life were not yet well defined!

Katuri Venkateswararao, a great poet and close family friend of Him says, if great poets could imagine a theme in ten ways, VS could do the same in hundred ways! Writing great works for Him says Katuri, is like playing marbles!

His works deserve to be read by the entire world. Only since Tagore translated his own works into English, world noticed him. Not all of His works are could be translated. But those that are, should be made available to readers of other languages!

Once again to say, geniuses are rare! But there are geniuses! And there is Him, the writer, poet and many more things, and is called Viswanatha Satyanarayana! Could there be another one like him? There never was! There never is! There never would be! That is Him, the true Monarch! Kavisamrat!!

 



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