A new Telangana Talli statue is being designed and sculpted as a tribute to the first World Telugu Conference being held after the formation of Telangana state.
The new statue being sculpted by the Department of Sculpture, Potti Sriramulu Telugu University (PSTU), will be on display at the university during the conference to showcase Telugu culture to visitors and later will be shifted to the university museum.
Unlike the several Telangana Talli statues that sprung up across the State during the Telangana agitation and later, this statue will be just four-and-a-half feet, made with fibre, but containing all the minute details of the main Telangana Talli statue that came up near the Secretariat.
“We are spending just ₹20,000 odd for the statue and will be as attractive as any other,” said Srinivasa Chari, faculty member of the Sculpture Department.
Mr. Chari said the statue will hold harvest in one hand, reflecting prosperity of the region, while Bathukamma, the cultural symbol of Telangana, will be in other hand. She will be dressed in the traditional Telugu attire.
B. Venkata Ramana Chary, who originally designed the first Telangana Talli statues, is also shaping the present one along with other faculty members, with students extending their support. Unlike other statues made of bronze metal, this is made of fibre, and will survive the vagaries of nature and time if properly maintained.
Telangana Talli was a symbolic representation of the agitation of Telangana people for a separate State and was adopted by people as the representation of the Goddess similar to Telugu Talli. During the agitation, people rejected the idea of Telugu Talli not out of disrespect but to drive home the aspirations of a separate identity for Telugus in Telangana.
University Vice-Chancellor S.V. Sathyanarayana said that the statue is being sculpted as a contribution of the university to the World Telugu Conference and will be an embodiment of various aspects of cultural legacy of Telangana.
