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Rallapalli Anantakrishna Sharma
ರಾಳ್ಳಪಲ್ಲಿ ಅನಂತಕೃಷ್ಣ ಶರ್ಮ
The scholar-singer — who saved the songs of Annamacharya
Years
1893 – 1979
Known as
Rallapalli Anantakrishna Sharma — scholar, poet, and musician
Birthplace
Rallapalli, Andhra Pradesh
Field
Poets & Writers
“The songs of the great singers of Bhārat are the nation's treasure — let them be saved for all.”
— Rallapalli Anantakrishna Sharma
The Story
Born in 1893 in Andhra, Anantakrishna Sharma was a brilliant student of Sanskrit and Telugu who also trained in music — a combination that made him one of the most versatile scholars of the age. He taught and wrote in both languages, producing works of scholarship and poetry of high quality.
His great life's work was the recovery of the songs of Annamacharya, the fifteenth-century singer-saint of Tirupati whose thousands of songs had been forgotten for centuries. Sharma travelled, collected, and edited the songs from the copper plates and manuscripts, publishing them with scholarly care and making the music of Annamacharya live again.
He died in 1979, honoured as one of the great savants of the South. His editions of Annamacharya's songs are the foundation of the modern revival of the singer-saint's music, and his name is remembered with gratitude by the world of Telugu scholarship and music.
Core Ideas
The Songs of Annamacharya
He recovered and edited thousands of the saint's songs.
The Scholar
Deep learning in Sanskrit and Telugu.
The Musician
A master of the music of the South.
The Poet
Works of poetry and scholarship of high quality.
The Preserver
He saved the treasure of the nation's music.
Why it matters today
Rallapalli Anantakrishna Sharma is honoured as the savant who brought the songs of Annamacharya back to the world — a scholar, poet, and musician whose editions are the foundation of the singer-saint's revival. His name is remembered with gratitude wherever the music of Tirupati is sung.