Gona Ganna Reddy () was a military chieftain and an influential figure during the

Kakatiya dynasty The Kakatiya dynasty (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: Kākatīya) was a Andhras, Telugu dynasty that ruled most of eastern Deccan Plateau, Deccan region in present-day India between 12th and 14th centuries. Their ter ...

. He ruled Vardhamaanapuram (now Nandi Vaddeman) in present-day

Nagarkurnool district Nagarkurnool district is a district in the southern region of the Indian state of Telangana. The town of Nagarkurnool is the district headquarters. It was part of the Mahbubnagar district prior to re-organisation of districts in the state. The d ...

and was a loyal supporter of

Rani Rudrama Devi Rudrama Devi (reigned 1262–November 1289), also known by her regnal name Rudra-deva Maharaja, was a Kakatiya Queen regnant who ruled substantial parts of present-day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in southern India. She was among the few su ...

, one of the few female rulers in Indian history. As a key military leader, Gona Ganna Reddy played an instrumental role in maintaining the stability of the Kakatiya dynasty, particularly in supporting Rudrama Devi's rule. He contributed to several infrastructural projects, including the construction of lakes with his brother-in-law, Danda Senani. He was the son of Gona Budda Reddy, a poet who contributed to the ''Ranganatha Ramayanam'' in the Telugu language.

Life

Gona Ganna Reddy had two brothers and one sister. They were the poets Gona Kacha Reddy, Gona Vitalanatha and Kuppambika. Gona Kacha Reddy and Vitalanatha's contributions include the completion of the Uttarakaanda section in the ''Ranganatha Ramayanam''. Ranganatha's version was the first and foremost ''

Ramayanam The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

'' written in Telugu literary history by Gona Budda Reddy. His sister, Kuppambika is known to be the first Telugu woman poet as per Buddapuram inscriptions. Kuppambika married Malyala Gundadandadeeshudu, who was also known as Danda Senani. Gona Ganna Reddy married the love of his life Annaambika, best friend of Rudramadevi. A 400-page

Kakatiya The Kakatiya dynasty (IAST: Kākatīya) was a Telugu dynasty that ruled most of eastern Deccan region in present-day India between 12th and 14th centuries. Their territory comprised much of the present day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and p ...

historical novel was written by Adavi Baapiraju in 1946.

Khilla Ghanpur Khilla Ghanpur is a historic place equidistant, 25 km, from Mahabubnagar and Wanaparthy towns of Telangana state, India. It is 111 kilometers away from Hyderabad city. History Khilla Ghanpur or Ghanpur, Wanaparthy district was ruled by Rech ...

, a town in South Telangana near

Mahabubnagar Mahbubnagar, also informally called as Palamoor and formerly Rukmammapeta, is a city in Mahbubnagar District of the Indian state of Telangana named after the 6th Nizam of Hyderabad, Mahboob Ali Khan. It is the headquarters of Mahbubnagar m ...

and

Wanaparthy Wanaparthy is a town in the Wanaparthy district of Telangana, India. Wanaparthy Samsthanam was founded in 1512 AD, after the Kakatiya kingdom declined. In 1817 AD, the Suguru estate's capital was transferred to Wanaparthy Province in 1817 AD ...

, also known as Ganapuram, is named after him and the Kakatiya king Ganapati Deva. He constructed several lakes with the help of his brother-in-law Danda Senani during Kakatiya's rule. After Gona Ganna Reddy's death, his brother-in-law, Malyala Gundadandadeeshudu also known as Danda Senani, became the king of Vardhamaanapuram.

Gona Dynasty

During the

(995–1323), Gona Budda Reddy ruled a kingdom in

Mahbubnagar district Mahabubnagar district, also known as Palamuru district, is a district in the Indian state of Telangana. Mahbubnagar, Mahabubnagar is the district headquarters which is popularly known as Palamoor. The district shares boundaries with Narayanapet ...

from Vardhamaanapuram (currently known as Nandi Vaddemaan) and

(Fort Ghanpur) in modern-day

Ghanpur, Mahbubnagar district Ghanpur is a Mandal in Wanaparthy district, Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is th ...

. He and his family, the Gona dynasty, was mostly loyal to the

. When he died, his brother Gona Lakuma Reddy took over the kingdom and rebelled against the Kakatiya, but his son Gona Ganna Reddy remained loyal to them in Vardamanapuram, (1262–1296 CE) indirectly supporting the rule of Kakatiya Queen

Rudrama Devi Rudrama Devi (reigned 1262–November 1289), also known by her regnal name Rudra-deva Maharaja, was a Kakatiya Queen regnant who ruled substantial parts of present-day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in southern India. She was among the few s ...

against opposition to female rule. After the Buddapuram (present-day Bhoothpur) war, Kakatiya's King Prataparudra II married Gona Ganna Reddy's daughter at

fort.

In popular culture

In the 2015 film '' Rudhramadevi'', Gona Ganna Reddy was portrayed by

Allu Arjun Allu Arjun (born 8 April 1982) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. He is one of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinemaand has been featured in ''Forbes Indias Celebrity 100 list since 2014. Allu Arjun's accolades include a Na ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gona, Ganna Reddy Telugu people Telugu monarchs 1261 births Year of death unknown