The Takshashila Institution hosted a book launch of ‘RAYA : Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara ’ on Saturday, 30 May, 2020. The event featured a conversation between the book’s author Srinivas Reddy and Anirudh Kanisetti, a research analyst and a historian at Takshashila.
The book is a biographical account of the famous king of the Vijayanagara empire, Krishnadevaraya and provides an account of life and times of the South Indian people during this era.
Srinivas Reddy provided a brief outline of the book, and recalled his trip to Hampi and said that history is ever-present which people can experience. During the course of the lecture, he also highlighted an important point about Krishnadevaraya —that he was a man who did not come from an aristocratic family, rather, Raya belonged to a family of local chiefs. Indeed, despite being from a non-royal family, Krishnadevaraya was not just a powerful king, but also a great poet, composing some of the most important works in Telugu literature. Raya was also a man who cared deeply about his subjects, and it wasn’t out of the ordinary for the king to chat with the cooks, jesters, and fighters on a daily basis.
After the brief lecture, Srinivas Reddy and Anirudh Kanisetti began the discussion about the book, before inviting questions from the audience.
Grab a copy of ‘RAYA : Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara’ at your nearest bookstore or order one online for a fascinating look into the story of the mythical South Indian king, Krishnadevaraya.
The Takshashila Institution is an independent and non-partisan think tank and school of public policy. Takshashila offers 12-week certificate courses in Public Policy, Technology and Policy, and Defence and Foreign Affairs and a 48-week postgraduate program in Public Policy.
The stream of the event can be found here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkRFThNI2es
