O Raghu Veerayani Ne Pilachina - Madhyamavathi - Bhadrachala Ramadas - M Balamuralikrishna (AIR)

Dr. M Balamuralikrishna renders Badrachalam Ramadas keertanas in the style popular in his childhood around Konaseema, the region from where he came from. Please take you time to listen to this AIR version of a rare rendition as a prelude to Sri Rama navami. Jai Shri Ram! oOo I had a chance to revisit the information printed on the LP record of 1977 and thought of reproducing the same for those who are interested about Bhadrachalam and Ramadas. Here is an excerpt from the sleeve notes written by Sri. V A K Ranga Rao for LP record (ECSD 3728) of Sri Bhadrachala Ramadas Keerthanams rendered by Dr. M Balamuralikrishna in 1977. There is a Rama Mandiram, a small shrine dedicated to Lord Rama, in every nook and corner of Andhra (roughly the area in Southern India where Telugu is spoken). Till a few decades ago these gathering places reverberated every evening with pious groups singing the praise of Rama. The author of the songs in this “Rama bhajana,” is Bhadrachala Ramadas. There are many legends in vogue about Ramadas and of his association with the temple of Rama in Bhadrachalam. The consensus is that Ramadas was born around 1620 in Nelakondapalli. A devotee of Rama from birth, he was initiated into Rama Mantra by Bhakta Kabir. His maternal uncles Akkanna and Madanna, important courtiers in Golkonda Durbar, had him employed as the Tahasildhar (the prime tax collecting official in a district) of Bhadrachalam. Moved by the plight of Rama’s temple there, Ramadas spent the money collected from the people in renovating the temple. Angered, the reigning Tanasha of Golkonda imprisoned him for twelve years. Motivated by a divine vision of Rama and Lakshmana bringing back the dues, Tanasha released Ramadas and gave him whole hearted permission to further improve the temple complex. Many incidents of Ramadas’s life are reflected in his songs, are mostly in the simplest of metres and words. This explains their unique popularity with the rural folk. The earliest reference to Bhadrachala Rama is in “Brahmananda Puranam” in the section dealing with “Gouthami Mahathyam.” It says that Bhadra obtained a boon from Rama that he would be consecrated with the presence of the God and Goddess accompanied by Sheshashayi (Rama, Seetha and Lakshmana) at the time of Rama’s incarnation. For various reasons this shrine came to be neglected when a dedicated women devotee, Tammala Dammakka, received divine ordinance in a dream to clear the jungle over-growth around the statutory and bring it again to the notice of the worshippers. This she did till the advent of Ramadas.