Youth promote ‘better side’ of Rayalaseema on social media

Pages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter showcase its natural grandeur and cultural heritage

“Issues like negative social comparison and anxiety exist in the world, so they’re going to exist on social media too,” Instagram noted.

In an attempt to change the faction feud narrative of Rayalaseema in many popular movies, several groups of youngsters have taken to the social media platforms to highlight the better side of the region.

The youths have created exclusive pages on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to promote the natural grandeur the region is blessed with and the rich cultural heritage.

While most of the content of these pages is replete with photographs of the major landmarks in the districts or cities, traditions being followed during religious and cultural events, some highlight the day-to-day developments and welfare schemes introduced by the government.

The page titled ‘Kadapa Smart City’ on Instagram has more than 28,000 followers. “Backwardness, drought-prone region and faction-ridden are not the identities of Kadapa. There is a lot of positive development happening in our district, which we want to tell it to the world. This page is a small attempt in that direction,” says page admin Shaik Moula. He sources pictures from followers from the district —right from Rayachoti to Jammalamadugu—and posts it on the page

While the keyword ‘Tirupati’ is usually searched for devotional content, ‘It’s My Tirupati’, with more than 81,000 followers on Instagram and 28,000 on Facebook, goes beyond it.

Apart from posting information pertaining to tickets and darshan updates of the Lord Venkateswara temple and other famous shrines, the page highlights places of tourists’ interest in Chittoor district. “People visiting Tirupati not only look at Tirumala, but want to spend quality time with their families. We provide inputs on the lesser-known tourist destinations, picturesque locations and weekend hangouts,” says the page admins Nithin and Prudhvi.

When the COVID-19 vaccine was in high demand during the peak of the second wave of the pandemic, the page provided updates on its availability at various vaccination centres. Of late, the newly-opened commercial outlets are finding increased presence on this page.

‘The Kadiri’, an Instagram page which is apparently an upstart with just above 425 followers, seeks to promote the cultural face of Anantapur district.

“We also aim at highlighting the lack of development in and around Kadiri,” says Dada Peer, the page admin. He wants the politicians and bureaucrats to follow the page to know the pressing public issues better.