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Velcheru Narayana Rao is an Indian author, critic, and literary translator. He is a professor at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...
in the Department of South Asian Studies. His work is primarily focused on
Telugu literature Telugu literature includes poetry, short stories, novels, plays, and other works composed in Telugu. There is some indication that Telugu literature dates at least to the middle of the first millennium. The earliest extant works are from the ...
for which he received the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, the highest honour conferred by
Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of the Indian government. Its off ...
, in February 2021.


Early life

Velcheru Narayana Rao was born in Ambakhandi,
Srikakulam district Srikakulam district is a district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, located in the Uttarandhra region of the state, with its headquarters located at Srikakulam. It is one of the six districts, located in the extreme northeastern direction ...
,
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
, India. He later moved to
Eluru Eluru ( ) is a city and the district headquarters of Eluru district in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the List of municipal corporations in India#Andhra Pradesh, 14 municipal corporations ...
, Andhra Pradesh. He completed his
B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
from Sir C. R. Reddy College in Eluru. He obtained his M.A. from
Andhra University Andhra University is a public university located in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. It was established in 1926. It is graded as an A++ institution by NAAC receiving a score of 3.74 on a scale of 4. History King Vikram Deo Verma, the Mah ...
in 1968, and later obtained a diploma in linguistics from
Osmania University Osmania University is a collegiate university, collegiate Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, issued a ''firman'' calling f ...
in 1970. He earned a Ph.D. from Andhra University in 1974.


Work

In 1971, Narayana Rao was appointed a lecturer in the Department of South Asian Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In 1987 he became a professor at the university. He has also been a visiting professor at the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
and
Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...
. Narayana Rao has translated several
Telugu language Telugu (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. Spoken by about 96 million people (2022), Telugu is the most widely spoken member of ...
books into English including
Gurajada Apparao Gurajada Venkata Apparao (21 September 1862 – 30 November 1915) was an Indian playwright, dramatist, poet, and writer known for his works in Telugu theatre. Rao wrote the play '' Kanyasulkam'' in 1892, which is considered as the greatest pla ...
's '' Kanyasulkam'' as ''Girls for Sale: Kanyasulkam'', ''A Play from Colonial India'' and Allasani Peddana's Manu Charitramu as ''The Story of Manu''. He has co-authored books with David Shulman and
Sanjay Subrahmanyam Sanjay Subrahmanyam (born 21 May 1961) is an Indian American historian of the early modern period. He is the author of several books and publications. He holds the Irving and Jean Stone Endowed Chair in Social Sciences at UCLA which he joined i ...
such as ''God on the Hills: Temple Songs from Tirupati'' and ''Textures of Time: Writing History in South India''. He also wrote a book on Telugu poetry titled ''Hibiscus on the Lake: Twentieth Century Telugu Poetry from India''.


Bibliography

*1998 (with David Shulman), ''A Poem at the Right Moment: Remembered Verses from Premodern South India'', University of California Press. *2002 (with David Shulman and
Sanjay Subrahmanyam Sanjay Subrahmanyam (born 21 May 1961) is an Indian American historian of the early modern period. He is the author of several books and publications. He holds the Irving and Jean Stone Endowed Chair in Social Sciences at UCLA which he joined i ...
), ''Textures of Time: Writing History in South India'', Paris, Seuil, Permanent Black, Delhi. *2002 (with David Shulman), ''Classical Telugu Poetry: An Anthology'', University of California Press, Oxford University Press, New Delhi. *2002 (with David Shulman), ''The Sound of the Kiss, or the Story that Must be Told. Pingali Suranna's Kaḷāpūrṇōdayamu'', Columbia University Press. *2002 (with David Shulman), ''A Lover's Guide to Warangal. The Kridabhiramamu of Vallabharaya'', Permanent Black, New Delhi. *2006 (Translation, with David Shulman) ''The Demon's Daughter: A Love Story from South India'', (by Piṅgaḷi Sūrana) SUNY Press, Albany. *2005 (with David Shulman), ''God on the Hill: Temple poems from Tirupati'', Oxford University Press, New York. *2012 (With David Shulman) ''Srinatha: The Poet who Made Gods and Kings'', Oxford University Press. *2015 (Translation of Allasani Peddana, with David Shulman) ''The Story of Manu''. Murti Classical Library of India.


References


External links


Narayana Rao
at the
University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...
Date of birth missing (living people) Living people Narayana Rao 21st-century Indian male writers Writers from Vijayawada Telugu-language writers Indian literary critics 21st-century Indian translators Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship Telugu people People from Andhra Pradesh Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century Indian male writers 20th-century Indian translators 21st-century Indian non-fiction writers 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers Indian male non-fiction writers {{India-translator-stub