Ande Sri

When the great seer, spiritual guru, Mysore Dutta Peetadhipathi, Sri Sri Sri Ganapathi Sachidananda Avadhutha heard about his profound insight of Indian spiritual values in his lyrics, he was enthralled and warmly welcomed him and honored him with a ‘Swarna Kankana’ (golden bracelet) amidst of great literary legends. The great Maharshi also offered him a cash award of one lakh rupees. Ande Sri's life has taken one more turn when a humblest soul whose reputation even crossed overseas, ushered the way to this nature poet for his literary journey. By the virtue of his companionship, Ande Sri's journey of life as well as his literary career flourished.

Ande Sri worked as a shepherd at local landlords estate. He was picked up by Swami Shankar Maharaj associated with Sringeri Matam after hearing him at his village. Swamiji was enthralled and warmly welcomed him and honored him with a ‘Swarna Kankana’ (golden bracelet) amidst of great literary legends. The great Maharshi also offered him a cash award of one lakh rupees. Ande Sri's life has taken one more turn when a humblest soul whose reputation even crossed overseas, ushered the way to this nature poet for his literary journey. By the virtue of his companionship, Ande Sri's journey of life as well as his literary career flourished.

The outward appearance of this blessed poet is simple,unassuming, rustic. But the moment one peeps into his inner soul, his colossal cosmic spirit plaited with Indian spirituality illuminates. During the second half of the nineties, when the separate Telangana aspiration was picking up its pace on the political, social and literary scenarios, Ande Sri voiced his inner spirit and chorused to the cause, as a mean at his disposal. When the movement took its form into volcanic outburst of struggle, Ande Sri with an unparalleled commitment, began to stride along with the cause, voicing the Telangana people's longing desire through his lyrics. The whole land of struggle resonated with his songs. During the period of seventeen years in the history of Telangana struggle, no platform was left untouched by his songs. The songs like ‘JAI BOLO TELANGANA JALA GARJANALA JADIWANA’ and ‘JAYA JAYA HEY TELANGANA JANANI JAYA KETHANAM’ ignited the people's spirits. When the state came into existence, the later was honored as state song which echoed thousands of triumphant beats into the millions of hearts. Today, the song is echoed on every premise of Telangana schools. Like Bankim's Vandemataram and Tagore's Jana Gana Mana, Ande Sri's Jaya Jaya He received a great respect across the Telangana region.

Telangana is his motherland. He never forgets his roots. He not only orchestrated the social issues of his own land but also wove various lyrics of universal concern and unsung pathos of humanity. One of his unprecedented compositions of the modern times in the literary field, the song ‘Mayamai Pothunnadamma Manishannavaadu’ rocked the whole world. The pathos that he filliped and the pangs that he touched in this song questioned the entity of vanishing humanity. The poem had the unwritten record registered on everybody's heart. And this exquisite piece of lyric had the honor of inclusion in the curriculum of united Andhra Pradesh state. ‘Nadachipoye Nalla Meghalalo…’ The maestro's mastermind swings on fluffy clouds taking you into a world of hanging heavens where you listen to the music of raising waves and falling tides, rustling leaves, chirping birds and crickets, hissing snakes, buzzing bees, and the mellifluous musical stream hidden behind a bough, and the reed that becomes alive when the lips touch. You can see the arch of vibrant colours, and the tapping drum beats of raindrops. As a whole; nature's mask is unveiled in this poem. ‘Adithya Nee pada dhuli… Sanjatha keli…’ The bright star over the horizon, the fire of the flower that illuminates the earth, the rays that pierce into impregnated dark ignorance awakened the poet spiritually. The song's grand delineation of the sun clings to the heart. “The human body is the chariot and the hopes are the white horses and the breaths are the reins”, he sings. He beautifies the Sun with marvelous menageries. His one more master piece, ‘Kaalam Karavaalam’ A Time-scimitar, obviously in the hands of the poetry-mastroe, bewares everyone unveiling the universal truth ...Time is scimitar. It engulfs everyone and everything. Nothing exists permanent in front of it. Hey Man! Raise yourself by your deeds. Imprint your footprints on the time by doing blissful and righteous errands as you are a given a chance to do so... is altogether unparalleled to any poetic work of its kind. His philosophical explore into various facts of day-to-day life shrugs the roots of age-old beliefs. He questions the injustice to the unappreciated hands, which build everything. He worries about the malevolent unequal status of the woman folk. He raises his voice against the unjust social disparities of colour, creed, and caste.

Having started his life as a pastoral kid, the journey of his life, like a streaming flow never ceased nor coursed aright. Perhaps, that has induced him to switch over to write an epic poem on the Rivers. This dream of his travel to the majestic streams and the magnificent beauties of leaping Waterfalls across the globe had no way to come true as he was literally penniless. This has come true when the myriads of admirers extended their support. Consequently, in 2010, the tour began from Peru where the great river, the Amazon takes its birth and courses into Brazil. He then proceeded to the Parana River streaming along the frontiers of Brazil and Argentina and there he also witnessed the exquisite scenic beauties of the Iguazu waterfalls cascading over rocks. He also experienced the tranquility of the Mississippi river of the United States of America and the grandiose of the Nile that flows into arid African lands of Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda. He also visited the dazzling beauties of the Congo River. Then his next visit was to Victorian falls of Zimbabwe, the largest sheet of falling waters, and the flow of Zambezi River satiated some extent of his thirst of streaming beauties. He has flown to Chinese lands and perched on the banks of the Yangzi and the Yellow river, the creeping giants with extreme stillness. Then he rushed to Australia to witness the splendid beauties of the Murray River and then went London to watch the grandiose of the Thames.

Ande Sri (born 1961) is an Indian poet and lyricist. Telangana state Geyam(song) "Jaya Jaya he Telangana Janani Jaya ketanam" is written by Andesri. He has won the Nandi Award for Best Lyricist for the Telugu film Ganga (2006).