Varavara Rao
Varavara Rao, popularly known as V.V was born on 3rd November 1940 in a small village (Chinna Pendyala) in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh, India. He started writing poetry and literary criticism from college days. He was a lecturer by profession and taught Telugu literature to graduate and undergraduate students for about 40 years.
Varavara Rao founded “Sahithi Mithrulu” (friends of literature) and launched Srijana - a forum for modern Telugu literature in November 1966. He formed “Thiragabadu” (rebel) poets group along with his poet comrades in January 1970. To merge within no time, bringing together the like-minded writers’ groups and individuals in to Viplava Rachayitala Sangham (VIRASAM – Revolutionary Writers’ Association) on 4th July 1970, a revolutionary breakthrough in Telugu Literature. He consistently remained on its executive till now, serving as secretary for one term (1984-86).
He is also the founder executive member of the All India League for Revolutionary Culture (AILRC) formed in 1983. He has been its general secretary since 1993.
He was prosecuted and persecuted by the state for more than two decades. There was even threat to his life in 1980s. Implicated all together in 18 cases, he spent six years in jail intermittently since 1973, the last one being, “one thousand days and nights of solitary confinement” during 1985 – 89 in Secunderabad and Ramnagar Conspiracy case. The later under TADA is still pending since 1986. The courts have acquitted him in all other seventeen cases.
Srijana, almost a literary movement for two decades had its imprint on a generation, brought out 200 hundred issues during 1966 – 92 with intermittent bans and breaks by the state. V.V’s wife Hemalatha also had to taste the Jail life twice (1n 1978 and 1984) as its publisher.
Virasam is continuing revolutionary movement in Telugu, inspiring and influencing the writers, intellectuals, students and youth for 28 years. V.V is part and parcel of the both these streams of the movement. As part of this revolutionary movement V.V brought out seven anthologies of poems, a Ph.D. thesis in Telugu (Telangana Liberation Struggle – Telugu Novel – A study into interrelationship of society and literature) in 1983, and editorials of Srijana (1966 – 85) in 1990.
His post-doctoral work 1991-94 was on the transformation of folk song into peoples’ song in Telangana during 1968-88. V.V’s ‘letter from jail’ was published simultaneously in Andhra Prabha (Telugu) and Indian Express literary supplements from December 1988 to April 1989, evoking keen interest in freedom loving and sensitive writers. Telugu collection of these letters, Sahacharulu (companions) was published in 1989.
V.V translated into Telugu Ngugi Wa Thiango’s novel “Devil on the cross” and “ A Writer’s prison diary – Detained” during his confinement in jail in 1985 – 89, published by Swecha Sahithi in 1982, 96 respectively.
Varavara Rao, along with Gaddar acted as an emissary for Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Peoples War when the Telugu Desam Government proposed peace talks with Peoples War party in 2001. The talks’ process went on between May and July 2002. Varavara Rao and Gaddar pulled out of the peace negotiations after unabated ‘encounter’ killings.
Again in June 2004, Varavara Rao along with Gaddar and novelist G Kalyana Rao, acted as emissaries of CPI (ML) People’s War in the peace talks initiated by the Congress Party. The peace talks which started in 2004, after a round of negotiations, ended with the ban on CPI (Maoist) [CPI (ML) People’s War merged with Maoist Communist Center and became CPI (Maoist)], Virasam and other people’s organizations on 18 August 2005.
Within 24 hours of imposition of ban on Virasam, Varavara Rao and Kalyana Rao were arrested on 19 August 2005 under AP Public Security Act and sent to Chanchalguda Central Prison in Hyderabad. Since his arrest, 7 new cases were charged against him. The court struck down the case on Varavara Rao under Public Security Act on 31st March 2006 and he obtained bails for all other cases by the time. He was released from jail under bail on 31st March 2006 after a period of about 7 and half months.