A critic, poet, and an ‘ashtavadhani’ who had championed the cause of the Dalits, Ashavadi Prakasa Rao, 78, died following a heart-attack, at Penukonda in Anantapur district at 2 p.m. on Thursday. The last rites would be performed on Friday.
In January 2021, Prakasa Rao had received the fourth-highest civilian award, Padma Shri, under ‘Arts and Literature’ category.
Born on August 2, 1944, Prakasa Rao is survived by three sons and four daughters from his first wife, Vaduguru Lakshmi Devi, who had died a few years ago, and two sons from his second wife.
People from all walks of life and across political parties condoled the death of Prakasa Rao. Roads and Buildings Minister M. Sankaranarayana conveyed his condolence to the bereaved family members. Penukonda Sub-Collector Naveen visited the house of Prakasa Rao and paid floral tributes.
Prakasa Rao was known for his works in Telugu and Sanskrit. He had worked as Telugu lecturer and later as principal of Government Degree College at Penukonda. He had received 13 awards during his lifetime.
As ‘ashtavadhani’, Prakasa Rao had given 170 performances and published 50 books. His most notable literary contribution was his performance of ‘avadhanam’.
He had received an honorary doctorate from Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University and a ‘Distinguished Teacher’ award from the Department of Higher Education, said Sahithi Gagan Mahal Trust president J. Prathapa Reddy.
Central Sahitya Academy Youth Award winner Harnadh Reddy, Anantapur Urban MLA Anantha Venkatarami Reddy, BJP Rajampet in-charge D. Venkateswara Reddy, and CPI national secretary K. Narayana and State secretary K. Ramakrishna expressed their grief over the death of Prakasa Rao.
