Hyderabad: Noted poet Andesri, who wrote and performed 'Jaya jaya he, Telangana', the state's anthem, passed away at his home in Lalapet, Hyderabad, on the morning of November 10. He was 64.

Andesri, born Ande Ellaiah, belonged to a Dalit community and overcame numerous obstacles to occupy a position of renown in the state. His anthem became a massive hit during the agitation for a separate state of Telangana, a demand that was fulfilled in 2014. Andesri spent most of his life in abject poverty and could not attend school. He did not get a formal education in reading and writing – one of his daughters would act as scribe as he composed his songs.

Andesri was born in Rebarthi, a village near Jangaon in July 1961. He worked as a cowherd during his childhood and had little adult supervision, his close associate, professor M. Kodandaram, told The Wire.

The poet-songwriter never forgot the disappointments of early childhood, Kodandaram said. But Andesri's talent showed up as he grew older. He picked up language skills through listening rather than formal education, and pursued excellence in folk songs, initially weaving together verses about life in the village.

When the Telangana movement was at its peak from 2009 to 2014, his songs became famous among the Telugu-speaking diaspora. His popularity earned him several awards and an honorary doctorate from Kakatiya University in Warangal. One of his earliest songs to enter the limelight was 'Nannu ganna na palle andalu chudara' (See the beauty of the village that gave birth to me), a reflective verse on how he fended for himself after his mother had left.

In his poetry, as in life, his village became his mother, and thus he wrote his other popular line, 'Komma chekkite bomma ra, cheri mokkite amma ra' (A toy is fashioned from chiseled wood, and a mother becomes a goddess when worshipped). Andesri's reputation as a poet soared with 'Mayamai potunna-damma, manishanna vadu' (Man is vanishing as a human being) and 'Palle neeku vandalu' (Respects to my village). A Bharat Rashtra Samiti MLC, Deshapati Srinivas, said the song was almost a biography of Andesri's.

But it is 'Jai bolo Telangana, jana garjana la jadi vana' ('Glory to Telangana' sounds like torrential rain – the roar of a people), which featured in the film Jai Bolo Telangana, that really made his popularity soar.

But before any of this happened, says Kodandaram, who is the president of the Telangana Jana Samiti party, Andesri worked as a mason and even slipped into spiritual life for a while, propelled by hardship and the influence of a sadhu from Nizamabad who once gave him shelter.

Much later, Andesri met Biruduraju Rama Raju, a professor of folk literature at Osmania University, who helped hone his burgeoning skills as a poet. Andesri came to regard the professor as a father figure, Kodandaram said. The statehood movement also became Andesri's launch pad. During this movement, he came to be recognised for the wealth of his literary acumen.

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Many of his songs written during this phase could be sung best by him and no others. It left many wonderstruck – how could a man who never attended school compose such complex verses? The song that stood out, the future anthem of the new state, was already a school prayer in government schools, and was sung in Telangana's villages much before 2014. Advocates in the courts in Khammam would also begin their days singing this song.

It was initially recorded in 2004 in the voice of famous Telugu film singer V. Ramakrishna and later re-arranged as an anthem by popular music director M.M. Keeravani, a year after the Revanth Reddy-led Congress government came to power in 2023. Controversially, some also claim that Andesri and Telangana's former chief minister, K. Chandrashekar Rao had collaborated to finetune the song during the agitation.

After Telangana was carved out of Andhra Pradesh, Andesri demanded Rao accord the song with the status of an anthem, but Rao dithered – and, it is said, this caused the poet considerable anguish. Andesri, too, declined to accept the state government's felicitations – until the Congress came to power. Only last year, he was honoured with a 300-square yard plot of land in Hyderabad to build a home on, and a generous cash reward.

Andesri received the Nandi Award for films instituted by the Andhra Pradesh government for his song in the film Ganga in 2006 as well as the Dasarathi and Ravuri Bharadwaja literary awards.

Andesri recently visited the United States and Egypt, where he saw the Mississippi and the Nile rivers and dedicated a new song to rivers, relating them to Telangana's culture. It had yet to be released when the end came.

MLC and contemporary Gorati Venkanna said his songs melded tradition with Marxist thought, but the words always stayed in the traditional mould. His association with popular balladeer Gaddar, who passed away in 2023, was also a significant influence. Former chairperson of the Telangana Sahitya Akademi, Nandini Sidda Reddy, said he had been acquainted with the Andesri's songs for over three decades. He started by singing 'Alli billi angura thota, atla atla potunte Siddipeta', a song about the vineyards of Siddipet, a town near both Andesri and Reddy's native village.

Andesri's first song on Telangana was 'Chudu Telangana, chukka leni Telangana' (See Telangana; spotless Telangana) was first sung on stage in 2001, during the first anniversary of Telangana Writers Forum. Rao attended the meeting – before he had founded his party, the TRS (later renamed Bharatiya Rashtra Samiti) – and the song left an impression on him.

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He wrote numerous other lyrics, including some with rousing lines such as 'Okate jananam, okate maranam gelupu ponde varaku' (One life, one death till we achieve our goal). Andesri raised the banner of revolt against the government in combined Andhra Pradesh, refusing to sing the official song 'Maa Telugu talliki' at public functions.

Former education minister Dokka Manikya Varaprasad appealed to him to sing the song as well as 'Jaya jaya he, Telangana'. According to Sidda Reddy, Andesri's songs had enormous emotional appeal, including those like 'Mayamai potunna-damma', about globalisation.

Both Revanth Reddy and Chandrasekhar Rao expressed their condolences over the demise of Andesri. The Reddy government has announced a state funeral for Andesri. Rao praised his role during the agitation for Telangana, recalling his close ties with the poet in those days.

Andesri is survived by his wife and four children.

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