The Department of Culture arranged the Mahabharatham Harikatha Ganam to be performed by well known Bhagavathar Kota Satchidananda Sastri of Guntur, a great crowd puller and a scholar. The Harikatha ganam will continue for 18 days, and on each day the Bhagavathar will render an episode from Mahabharatham.
Speaking as the president of the inaugural function, Turlapati Kutumba Rao, veteran journalist and chairman of A.P. Grandhalaya Parishat, praised the Department of Culture for arranging the Mahabharatha Harikatha Gana Pravachanam at the Government Music College. He also appealed that people should patronise this art form, a great cultural heritage of Andhra people.
The inaugural function was also attended by the principal of the music college C.Munikumar, patrons of art Singamsetty Pedabramham and Ch. Venkateswara Rao. The function was followed by the much-awaited Harikatha by Kota Satchidananda Sastri.
The parvam narrated by the Bhagavathar was Bhishma Pratigna . Sastri sent the huge audience into raptures with his erudite Katha Ganam marked with good music, fluency of narration and subtle wit. The story included Vyasa Khananam , the birth of Bhishma, the wedding of Santana and Satyavathi and Bhishma Pratigna. Panyam Dakshina Murthy and Inguva Anjaneya Sastri supported the Bhagavathar on violin and mridangam respectively.
