Gururajulu Naidu

Gururajulu Naidu (1931[1]–1985) was a Harikathe storyteller. He was known as Harikathe pitamaha of Karnataka, and along with Achyuta Dasa and Keshava Dasa, he formed the trinity of Harikatha Vidwans. Gururajulu Naidu's Harikathe stories include Renukadevi Mahatme, Bhookailasa, Bheema Jarasandha and Bhakta Sudama. He helped to popularise Harikathe in Karnataka by recording albums of the stories.

Gururajulu Naidu

Gururajulu Naidu trained Harikatha to several disciples, including Shri N. Suryanarayanadas, Smt. Kumari Malini and LakshmanaDas. His harmonist was Vidwan Shivaramu.

Gururajulu Naidu was also known by the name Arun Kumar in the Kannada film industry. He acted in movies including Madhu Malathi, Hannele Chiguridaga and Mooroovare Vajragalu which co-starred Rajkumar. He also acted with Madhavi in Shivakanye. In Bangalore, in his honor, a roundabout is named by the municipality as "Gururajulu Naidu Vruttha".

His daughters also are Harikatha vidwans.

Style

Gururajulu Naidu's style of Harikathe was far removed from the slow and traditional style. It was fast-paced, interspersed with many humorous stories. Each Harikathe is about 90 minutes long. Though he has been criticised for this by the purists, Gururajulu Naidu's work was immensely popular. The content here is very less compared to the mahatma's true abilities.

Some of his popular performances are:

  1. Bhaktha Markendeya
  2. Bhaktha Siriyala
  3. MahiRavana
  4. Maya Bazaar
  5. Nallathanga Devi
  6. Gaja Gowri Vratha
  7. Shri Krishna Garudie
  8. Lava Kusha
  9. Nakku Nagisi Aluva Maresu
  10. Bhaktha Sudhama
  11. Bheema Jharasandha
  12. Girija Kalyana
  13. Mooruvare Vajragalu
  14. Kiratarjuna
  15. Sathya Harishchandra
  16. Uttarana Paurusha
  17. Chandrahaasa
  18. Maruthi Vijaya
  19. Santha Sakku Bhai
  20. Koluru Kodu Gusu
  21. Ayyappa Swamy
  22. Babru Vahana
  23. Muruvare Vajragalu
  24. Bhukailasa
  25. Nala Damayanthi
  26. Shani Prabhava
  27. The Ramayana (in four parts)
  28. Renuka Devi Mahathme
  29. Bhakta Kumbara
  30. Santha Ganeshwara

References
  1. Keshava, V. C. (2004). Exploring Mysore: A Complete Data Map in a Special Style. V.S.R. Prakashana. p. 133.
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