With that basic question in mind, I ventured to find more about my
people, my culture, and my roots. I was awestruck by what I learned. I was
proud to find that, in our heyday, Telugus established some of the greatest
empires in the world. They have built culturally vibrant, economically strong,
and socially conscious societies that are world wonders.
I have also learned that the term Telangana represents the entire
geography of the state of Andhra Pradesh, and not just the nine districts
ruled by the Nizam. Similarly, the term Andhra represents all Telugu-speaking
people of our state. This is how all Telugus have identified themselves up until
1953. The separatists redefined Andhra and Telangana with the sole intention
of creating a wedge between the regions.
According to the Indian Census, Telugu is the second most spoken
language in India after Hindi, indicating that Telugus had a large state in the
Indian subcontinent during the pre-Islamic invasion period. In the Kurukshetra
War for hegemony over India, Andhras aligned with Kauravas. According
to the 600 BC Rig Veda’s Aitareya Brahmana, we were originally called the
Andhras, and the term Telugu came much later. According to Professor Y.
Vaikuntham, Telugus were first mentioned in the Puri inscription of the Indra
Verma of Gangas. Although there is no agreement among historians, Telugu
possibly indicates people living in the three-linga country representing the
Shiva temples of Kaleswaram, Srisailam, and Draksharamam.
Two Telugu empires stand out in our recent history: the Kakatiya and
the Vijayanagara Empires, which are the last great symbols of Telugu glory
and represent our accomplishments’ high watermark.
Kakatiya Empire was responsible for uniting all the Telugus under
one nation. The Kakatiyas’ single greatest contribution to our society was
their ability to preserve the unique Telugu identity that we all enjoy today.
Kakatiyas recognized the importance of Telugu unity and our common destiny.
Consequently, over hundreds of years, they integrated all the Telugu people
living under different rulers into one Telingi nation.
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