Telugus don’t feel connected to their cultural heritage, said Deputy Speaker in Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly Mandali Buddha Prasad on Wednesday adding Telugu people are not known to value their glorious past.
Speaking at a seminar on ‘Museums and Cultural Landscapes’ jointly organised by the State Department of Archaeology and Museums, Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) and Department of Language and Culture, to mark the World Museum Day at Amaravati Heritage Centre and Museum in Guntur district, Mr. Buddha Prasad said Telugus perhaps should learn from British officers like Colin Mackenzie who explored the Buddhist sites in Amaravati and transported the excavated pieces to Madras Museum and Charles Philip Brown, an Englishman by descent but a Telugu writer who collected valuable literature works, printed them and saved some of the heritage of the Telugu language.
“We need to remember that we have inherited a rich legacy which must be protected and passed on to the next generations. Amaravati is a symbol of our civilisation which has been recognised world-over. Our biggest tragedy is that we have shun our own heritage which has been embraced by people of other countries,” he said, referring to the series of Amaravati sculptures and inscriptions which occupy a pride of place in the British Museum.
Director of the Department of Language and Culture, D. Vijaya Bhaskar, suggested that the history of Amaravati be made part of academic curriculum to help children connect to their past.
Amareswar Galla, Executive Director, International Institute for the Inclusive Museum and Curator, Amaravati Heritage Town, insisted on moving beyond tangible heritage. “We are not interested in building yet another glasshouse museum. We are thinking of sustainability; of the several intangible sources of heritage like the lifestyle of the local population, the food they ate, the clothes they wore and the song and dance they rejoiced in.” He said the idea was to involve the local people, make them realise the importance of preserving one’s past to build a healthy future and not allow commercialisation and globalisation take away their glorious past from them. “Living heritage should be safeguarded,” he emphasised.
Annals of Amaravati , a book written by Vavilala Subbarao, was released on the occasion. Founding president of Dakshina Chitra, Tamil Nadu, Deborah Thiagarajan, Director, Projects of Delhi-based Sahapedia Neha Paliwal, former Director General of National Council of Science Museums, Mumbai, G. S. Rautela, gave presentations. Guntur district Collector Kantilal Dande, Pedakurapadu MLA K. Sridhar, Executive Director, APTDC, R. Mallikarjuna Rao and Conservation Assistant, AP Department of Archaeology and Museums Koumudi Malladi participated.
