[దక్షిణ ఆసియా అధ్యయనానికి పేరెన్నికగన్న షికాగో యూనివర్సిటీ, అట్లాంటా లోని ఎమొరీ యూనివర్సిటీలలో, డాక్టరేట్ డిగ్రీ కొరకు పరిశోధనలు చేస్తున్న ఆయన శిష్యులు గౌతమ్ రెడ్డి, జమాల్ జోన్స్, ఇలానిత్ షాచమ్, హర్షితా కామత్ తమ తమ అభిప్రాయాలు ఈ వ్యాసం ద్వారా పంచుకుంటున్నారు. -సం.]

[The University of Chicago has long been renowned for its commitment to the study of the history and cultures of South Asia. The University’s Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations (SALC) offers a variety of courses in South Asian languages and emphasizes a textual-historical approach to the study of the region. Despite the continuous presence of Telugu language instruction for many years, classical Telugu literature has not been the primary focus of scholarly research. The arrival of Professor Velcheru Narayana Rao in 2009 was instrumental in inspiring a group of graduate students to place primary Telugu texts at the heart of their academic research. For the first time in the department’s history, Professor Narayana Rao offered a course in Classical Telugu alongside courses in Modern Telugu and Telugu literature. He taught classical Telugu through the texts of Srinatha, Allasani Peddanna, and Pingali Suranna.

In 2011 Professor Narayana Rao accepted a position at Emory University as a Visiting Distinguished Professor of South Asian Studies. Nevertheless, through technology as well as his commitment and zeal, the work he began with his students at the University of Chicago continues to thrive. Below are a few accounts of students who have worked with Professor Narayana Rao at the University of Chicago and Emory University.]

Gautham Reddy, University of Chicago

I first had the opportunity to meet Professor Narayana Rao in the spring of 2007 when he was co-teaching a class on Indian poetry with Professor David Shulman at the University of Chicago. Although hailing from a Telugu speaking family, I grew up in the United States without any serious exposure to Telugu (or Indian) literature. In my limited experience, the great wealth and history of Telugu literature was restricted to the few iconic padams of Annamacarya that my parents would play on well-worn cassette tapes. It was only in Professor Narayana Rao’s course that I came to realize how vast and varied the literary tradition of Telugu really is.

Through his and Professor Shulman’s anthology of translated Telugu poems, Classical Telugu Poetry, I was introduced to the captivating complexities of Nannaya, Srinatha, Pingali Suranna, and a whole host of other literary greats. We learned about enlightened emperors like Krishnadevaraya, clever jesters like Tenali Ramakrishna, and cultured courtesans like Muddupalani, all of who composed outstanding poetic works in Telugu. We examined the layered intricacies of catu poems and discussed the intelligent wit of satakas. Professor Narayana Rao’s eager enthusiasm for Telugu literature was exhilarating and I became inspired to learn more. In effect, a whole new world of history, literature, and imagination was opened to me that spring.

With the encouragement of Professor Narayana Rao, along with Professor David Shulman, I decided to apply for PhD programs where I could study Telugu literature and cultural history. Since I have been at Chicago, I have had the great privilege of studying with Professor Narayana Rao on multiple occasions. During my first year, we had many discussions on the role of western Orientalist scholars, such as C.P. Brown, in the making of modern Telugu literature. In the following year, we read through Cattamanchi Ramalinga Reddy’s path breaking Kavitvatattva Vicaramu and studied the implications of his work for future generations of Telugu literary critics. Most recently, we have been reading through some works of Visvanatha Satyanarayana, notably Veyi Padagalu.

Throughout my studies, Professor Narayana Rao has been a constant and committed guide. From simple questions on Telugu grammar to elucidating the particular socio-political literary context of the early twentieth century, he has been fundamental to my development as a student of Telugu literature. Few teachers can match the level of dedication and investment he has committed to his students. I feel truly blessed to have met such a multifaceted, broad-minded, and versatile scholar.

Jamal Jones, University of Chicago

During my second year of graduate school, I was engaged in a project on Telugu satakas under Professor Narayana Rao’s guidance. Though I was eventually to focus on the Simhadrinarasimha Satakamu and Venkatacalavihara Satakamu, in the early days of my research we were reading widely in the genre so that I could get a sense of its features. We read together almost every day, even if only a few verses. When I arrived at Professor Narayana Rao’s on one such day, he was noticeably under the weather. I told him that we could meet another day when he was feeling better, but he wouldn’t accept my offer. Reading would make him feel better he said. So, we sat down to read selections from the Ramadasu’s Dasarathi Satakamu. He sipped milk tea and took my questions on each verse I read in my halting Telugu. He was astute as always but I could see that he was tired. However, when we came to the verse where the poet with zeal and intense alliteration expresses his devotion, Professor Narayana Rao read after me. His eyes lit up; that slight, characteristic smile returned to his face; and, as he sung the sound of the drum (dandadadandadanda…), his voice returned to its usual vigor. In just a few moments, he had demonstrated both the power of Telugu poetry, however simple, and the great pleasure he takes in it.

Of course, Professor Narayana Rao has been demonstrating the power and importance of Telugu literature for years, offering deep insights into a wide range of genres through his extensive body of work. He asks much of the texts and of us as readers. He has made explicit the ideas of author, audience, text, and language that operate in Telugu literature. He asks us not just who wrote, for example, the Sri Kalahastisvara Satakamu and when: we all know that it was the 16th century poet Dhurjati. He asks not just what it says (though he has, with Hank Heifetz, told us English-speakers what it says in For the Lord of the Animals, his model translation of Dhurjati’s composition). No, he asks: what the nature of the satakamu is, beyond the hundred verses of its definition? What is the image of the author of the sataka? What is his position in society? How and to whom is a sataka meant to be read? How does the sataka relate to society? And, in these terms, how does a sataka–or any other kind of poem–differ from other major genres, such as the prabandha?

Professor Narayana Rao’s engagement with such questions goes back to his earliest work in Telugulo Kavita Viplavala Svarupam. And though he pushes us to examine these larger questions of genre and history, Professor Narayana Rao always works to unearth the unique voices that emerge from Telugu literature. More to the point, he always works—and makes me work—to listen for the particular beauty of the poem. He pushes us to see not only what power it may have held for those who first heard it. But, as my story shows, he also pushes us to see what power it holds for us as readers now.