Poet-Singer Jayaraj Given Prestigious Kaloji Narayana Rao Award

Poet-lyricist, historian and singer Jayaraj was today conferred upon the prestigious Kaloji Narayana Rao Award for the year 2023 by the State government.

A program was organised by the Telangana Department of Culture at Ravindra Bharathi to mark the occasion of the 109th birth anniversary of poet and Padma Vibhushan awardee Kaloji Narayana Rao, where Minister for Tourism and Culture V Srinivas Goud presented the award to Jayaraj, comprising a cash prize of Rs 1,01,116 and a memento.

Legislative Council Deputy Chairman Dr Banda Prakash Mudiraj, Advisor to the State Government K V Ramana Chary, MLC Deshpathi Srinivas, Telangana Tourism Development Corporation Chairman Gellu Srinivas Yadav, State Library Corporation Chairman Dr Ayachitham Sridhar, Sangeet Natak Academy Chairperson Deepika Reddy, Bhasha Samskruthika president Mantri Sridevi, Director of the Language and Culture department Mamidi Harikrishna, eminent literary figures, poets, artists and others participated in the program.

Upon the recommendation of a committee constituted by the State government, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had chosen Jayaraj for the prestigious award earlier this month. The award is given to accomplished persons in the fields of literature and culture.

Jayaraj, 60, who hails from the erstwhile Warangal district (now Mahabubabad district), encountered many hardships right from his childhood but still rose to fame as a poet. Hailing from a poor dalit family, Jayaraj envisioned a uniform society without discrimination in his literature. He is influenced by the Buddha's teachings and Ambedkar's writings. During the Telangana movement, he worked as a people's poet and propagated the Telangana ideology through cultural programs among the people by visiting every village. He also penned songs on the preservation of the environment and the importance of nature. Many books authored by him have already become popular.