''Sri Krishna Rayabaram'' (

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

: శ్రీ కృష్ణ రాయబారం) is a popular

Telugu drama Telugu theatre is Indian theatre in the Telugu language, based in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Gurajada Apparao wrote the play, ''Kanyasulkam'' in 1892, which is often considered the greatest play in the Telugu language.20th Cent ...

written by

Tirupati Venkata Kavulu Tirupati Venkata Kavulu ( Poets Tirupati & Venkata) refers to the Telugu poet duo Divakarla Tirupati Sastry (1872–1919) and Chellapilla Venkata Sastry (1870–1950). These twin poets are acclaimed as the harbingers of modern poetry in Telugu ...

in the early 20th century. It was made into a

Telugu film Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, H ...

in 1960. Many actors and companies have staged this production throughout

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to t ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

, and abroad.

Plot

The Cal and lot is based on the story of ''

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...

'', an ancient

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

epic.

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

acts as an emissary between

Pandavas The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, IAST: Pāṇḍava) refers to the five legendary brothers— Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva—who are the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. They are acknowl ...

and

Kauravas ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic '' Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his ...

to prevent a war. The play opens with the

Dvārakā Dvārakā, also known as ''Dvāravatī'' (Sanskrit द्वारका "the gated ity, possibly meaning having many gates, or alternatively having one or several very grand gates), is a sacred historic city in the sacred literature of H ...

scene, when Krishna is having a nap at his palace.

Duryodhana Duryodhana ( sa, दुर्योधन, ) also known as Suyodhana, is the primary antagonist in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata.'' He was the eldest of the Kauravas, the hundred sons of the blind king Dhritarashtra and his queen Gandhari. Being ...

and

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Pand ...

arrive to seek his help in the impending war. Krishna puts himself on one side and his entire army on the other and asks Arjuna to choose first. He promises not to participate in the war himself. Arjuna responds by seeking Krishna's presence in the war as his charioteer. Duryodhana happily gets Krishna's army on his side.

Depictions on film

''Sri Krishna Rayabaram'' was made as a Telugu film in 1960 by Y. V. Ramanujam under Chandrika Pictures. It starred

Kalyanam Raghuramaiah Kalyanam Raghuramayya (1901–1975), popularly known as Eelapata Raghuramayya, was an Indian actor, and thespian known for his works in Telugu cinema, and Telugu theatre. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, and the Padmashri, He was ...

Puvvula Suri Babu P. Suri Babu, or Puvvula Suri Babu (Telugu: పువ్వుల సూరిబాబు) (22 February 1915 – 12 February 1968), was an Indian actor and singer on stage and cinema. He had a peculiar bold voice and was called Kanchu Kantham ...

Gummadi Gummadi (Telugu: గుమ్మడి) is an Indian given name and surname. It may refer to: * Gummadi (actor) Gummadi Venkateswara Rao (9 July 1927 – 26 January 2010), known mononymously by his surname Gummadi, was an Indian actor and prod ...

, and

Tadepalli Lakshmi Kanta Rao Tadepalli Lakshmi Kantha Rao (16 November 1923 – 22 March 2009) was an Indian actor and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. Regarded as one of the finest method actors, Rao starred in more than four hundred feature ...

P. Suri Babu P. Suri Babu, or Puvvula Suri Babu (Telugu: పువ్వుల సూరిబాబు) (22 February 1915 – 12 February 1968), was an Indian actor and singer on stage and cinema. He had a peculiar bold voice and was called Kanchu Kantham ...

rendered music for the film and rendered some poems. Films such as ''

Sri Krishna Pandaviyam Shri (; , ) is a Sanskrit term denoting resplendence, wealth and prosperity, primarily used as an honorific. The word is widely used in South and Southeast Asian languages such as Marathi, Malay (including Indonesian and Malaysian), Javanese, ...

'' and ''

Daana Veera Soora Karna ''Daana Veera Soora Karna'' () is a 1977 Indian Telugu-language Hindu mythological film co-written, produced and directed by N. T. Rama Rao under his banner, Ramakrishna Cine Studios. Based on the life of Karna from the ''Mahabharata'' ...

'' dramatised the Rayabaram scene, with the poems rendered by eminent playback singers like

V. Ramakrishna Ramakrishna Vissamraju (20 August 1947 – 16 July 2015) was a playback singer in South India. Personal life and career Ramakrishna was born to Vissamraju Rangasayi and Ratnam on 20 August 1947. Ganakokila P.Suseela is his mother's sister. He ...

. Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao rendered some of the songs for Telugu films.Ghantasala audio of some poems
/ref>

Poems from the Rayabaram

* ''Chellio Chellako'' * ''Alugataye Erumgani'' * ''JandaPai KapiRaju'' * ''Santoshambuna SandhiCheyudu'' * ''Tammuni Kodukulu''

References

External links

1960 plays Indian plays Works based on the Mahabharata 1960s Telugu-language films 1960s Indian films Films based on the Mahabharata Indian plays adapted into films Plays based on Asian myths and legends {{1960s-Telugu-film-stub