Mā Telugu Talliki

"" is the official [List of Indian States and union territories of India|state songs|state song] of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The main subject of the song, Mother Telugu, is portrayed as a sacred symbol of the Telugu people.

Background

The words of the song were written by Shankarambāḍi Sundarācāri, and it was composed and sung by Ṭanguṭūri Sūryakumāri for the 1942 Telugu film Deena Bandhu, which starred V. Nagayya but was released as a private label by the artist.For the various versions on the etymology of Telugu, see Telugu language. The image of the mother is used as a metaphor for all the prosperity and culture of the region. She is the embodiment of various aspects of cultural legacy like the architecture of Amaravati; the classical music immortalised by Tyagaraja; the lyrical beauties of Tikkana, who rendered the Mahabharata into Telugu; the physical bravery of Rani Rudrama Devi of the 13th century Kakatiya dynasty; the 'devotion to husband' of Mallamma; the sharp intelligence of Timmarusu, who was the Prime Minister of Krishna Deva Raya; or the fame of Krishna Deva Raya. It may be seen that while invoking the cultural legacy of the Telugus, the song covers all the three important regions: Rayalaseema, Coastal Andhra and Telangana.

Lyrics

Legacy

The song was used in the 1976 film Alludochadu featuring Ramakrishna and Jayasudha. The song was used by N. T. Rama Rao after he launched the Telugu Desam Party during his state wide tour. The song was used in 1985 film Bullet featuring Krishnam Raju and Suhasini. It was last used in the 2010 film Leader featuring Rana Daggubati and Richa Gangopadhyay.