Telugu Heritage Museum at Kailasagiri

Museum will showcase the old and the new of Telugu culture

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The joint venture will be completed within a year Telugu history will be featured in pictorial and other forms Provision will be made for son et lumiere (light and sound) show in Telugu and English

SIGHT TO BEHOLD: The front elevation of proposed Telugu Cultural Museum at Vizag

VISAKHAPATNAM: Picturesque Kailasagiri overlooking the Bay of Bengal, a regular haunt of the tourists visiting the city, will have another feather on its cap in the shape of an architectural wonder, housing the తెలుగు సాంస్రితిక నికేతనం (`Telugu Saamskritika Niketanam'), a heritage museum of Telugu culture.

This museum-cum-folk arts presentation centre, to be built on a five-acre-site atop the hill, will showcase the old and the new of the Telugu culture by preserving its symbols and vestiges, according to World Telugu Federation (WTF) secretary-general B.S.R. Krishna.

Joint venture

A joint venture of the WTF and Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority (VUDA), it will be completed within a year. Eminent Telugu litterateur C. Narayana Reddy and wellknown art director Thota Tharani are involved in the preparation of the contents of the museum.

The museum proposes to highlight 30 episodes depicting the colourful history, culture and folk and fine arts of the Telugu people, besides their language, literature and music.

The history will be featured in pictorial and other forms, from the Satavahana era to the present day, as the Satavahana rulers, by their benevolent reign, had carved a niche for the Telugus in the Indian history.

Mr. Krishna has appealed to philanthropic individuals and institutions to become partners in this unique and prestigious project by sponsoring the episodes, each costing about Rs.10 lakhs. The sponsors' names will be inscribed in them.

There will also be a provision for son et lumiere (light and sound) show in Telugu and English with a view to attracting Telugu and non-Telugu visitors and enabling them to understand the various faacets of Telugu culture.

An amphitheatre will form part of the centre to conduct regular cultural shows to promote Telugu art forms.

The Niketanam will be managed by a trust registered as WTF-VUDA Trust, comprising five members from the WTF and four from the State Government.

Those interested in the project can get more details by contacting Mr. Krishna, residing at Venkatram Flats, No.3 Lokanathan Colony (Old No.2), Mylapore, Chennai-600004 (Tel: 044-24992237/24970245).

Courtesy: The Hindu