Indefatigable talent

Multifacted Dusi Dharmarao has documented the cultural history of North Andhra and also improved access to education in the region.Good writing, they say, reveals feeling, refines events, locates importance and intensifies the experience of living. Writings of Dursi Dharmarao - a prolific writer, essayist, lyricist, poet and social worker - belong to that rare category. This septuagenarian has been a tireless chronicler of the cultural history of North Coastal Andhra and that of Srikakulam district in particular, for over half a century.A retired lecturer in Telugu, for him life is about making an impact not making income. Born and brought up in Dusi, a dinky village known for the presence of erudite Vedic scholars in Srikakulam district, his tryst with letters took place quite early in life. His musical and cadenced expression is no different. His grandfather Dusi Jagannatham had conceived and formulated ‘Turupu Bhagavatham’ that evolved into a distinct rural art form in its own right. Thorough exposure to its live performances and its varied and cadenced articulations ( daruvulu ) of different characters infused in him a flair for musical expression. It led him to learn and gain mastery over art of playing the harmonium. It helped him make a foray into theatre and compose music for a good number of theatrical performances and dance ballets. He is an approved lyricist for AIR and Doordarshan. Imbued with a poetic turn of the phrase, his lyrics unveil bucolic charms of north coastal Andhra in its romantic shades.Dusi Dhramrao has more than a dozen and half publications to his credit on diverse cultural facets of north coastal Andhra. His Rasa Tarangini, a huge compilation of essays on a wide range of folk art forms as well as literary and musical aspects of this region, is a commendable work. An authority on the history and culture of Srikakulam district, his enduring works ‘ Srikakulam: A story on stone’, ‘History and Culture of Kalinga Andhra’, ‘History and Culture of Srikakulam District’ make an interesting reading. A globetrotter, his travelogues are no different. Folk arts of Uttarandhra, he says, need to be protected and preserved for posterity as they form rich and colourful strands in the cultural tapestry of Andhra PradeshAs the convener of Srikakulam chapter of Indian National Trust for Art Cultural Heritage (INTACH) New Delhi, he was instrumental in restoration of Upanishmandiram – a library of ancient works in Srikakulam.

Working in rural areas made Dhramarao conscious of the lack of access to education among villagers. When he found an elementary school at a small village Matham Sariapalli which catered to 34 surrounding villages in the 1960s, he resolved to get it upgraded to high school and collected the required fund from village folks, even knocking on almost every door in the villages. This, he did with a Petromax light during nights along with a few like-minded villagers who are otherwise busy in agricultural activities during the day. This indefatigable worker refuses to hang his shoes even at this age and is now actively doing his Ph.D in Telugu literature on the classical poets of north coastal Andhra.Folk arts of Uttarandhra, he says, need to be protected and preserved for posterity as they form rich and colourful strands in the cultural tapestry of Andhra Pradesh.