A young artist from Peddapalli district found a creative way of paying his tributes to renowned saint-composer, Bhakta Ramadasu (Kancharla Gopanna), by carving a sand sculpture of the composer at Nelakondapalli, the latter’s birth place, on Sunday.
R. Shankar, a sand artist, came all the way from Kukkalagudur in Peddapalli district to Nelakondapalli, carrying two bags of sand from his native place to exhibit his art at the historic town of Nelakondapalli.
He created a stunning sand sculpture of Ramadasa depicting him immersed in profound devotion to Lord Sitarama on the premises of Dhyana Mandiram.
He paid a befitting tribute to Bhakta Ramadasu through the medium of sand art at a ceremony organised by Sri Bhakta Ramadasa Vidwath Kala Peetam to mark Ramadasu’s 385th birth anniversary. A host of budding and seasoned musicians from far and near offered musical tribute to the saint composer by rendering his soul-stirring compositions extolling Lord Sitarama on the inaugural day of the three-day Ramadasu Jayanti celebrations. The Dhyana Mandiram came alive with a flurry of spiritual and devotional activities on Sunday. Artistes from different parts of the State presented a host of cultural programmes highlighting the significant facets of the life of Kancharla Gopanna, who built the historic Sri Sitaramachandra Swamy temple at Bhadrachalam during the reign of Qutb Shahi dynasty in 17th century. Earlier in the day, Minister for Roads and Buildings T. Nageswara Rao laid the foundation stone for a slew of development work proposed at Dhyana Mandiram at Nelakondapalli.
Speaking to The Hindu , Mr. Shankar said, “I came to Nelakondapalli to showcase my talent in sand art before a huge gathering of art lovers and connoisseurs.”
“I hail from a potter’s family and my innate artistic talent drew me to sand art, which I had mastered through vigorous practice out of sheer passion,” he said. My sand art at the recently-held World Telugu Conference in Hyderabad earned me wide accolades, he said with pride, asserting that his ambition was to excel in sand art at the national level.
