Just like in other parts of the country, many festivals are celebrated in Andhra Pradesh. However, certain festivals epitomize the culture of the state better and reflect its unique identity. These include Ugadi-which begins the Telugu New Year,Sankranthi-which is a harvest festival and Vijayadashami/Dasara.^[40] Bonalu and Batukamma are celebrated with gusto especially in the Telangana region. Brief details of these and other festivals are provided below.

• Eid ul-Fitr celebrated according to Muslim Lunar Hijri Calendar
• Eid al-Adha celebrated according to Muslim Lunar Hijri Calendar
• Sankranthi celebrated for a period of four days in January
• Maha Shivaratri in February/March
• Holi in March
• Ugadi or the Telugu New Year in March/April
• Muharram celebrated according to Muslim Lunar Hijri Calendar
• Milad-un-Nabi celebrated according to Muslim Lunar Hijri Calendar
• Sri Rama Navami celebrated in March/April, nine days after Ugadi
• BonaluThe most famous festivalcelebrated in Telengana Region only in the month of July/August
• Nagula Chaviti in August
• Varalakshmi Vratham in August
• Rakhi poornima in August
• Vinayaka Chavithi in August/September
• Dasara in September/October
• Deepavali in October/November, 20 days after Dasara
• Batukamma celebrated for nine days during Durgastami (called as Navratri–Dasara in Telangana region)

[edit]Games

Main article: Traditional games of Andhra Pradesh

Outdoor games include HOCKEY, Cricket, Football, Kabaddi, Kho Kho, Gilli-danda, Gilli Kaama, Gooti Billa, Gujjana Goollu, Gotilu, lingosh, Kothi Kommachi, Nalugu Stambhalata, Nalugu Rallu Aata,Yedu penkula aata, Donga Police aata, Amma nanna aata( child game), Tokkudu Billa, Goleelu and Nela-Banda. The major outdoor game played is cricket. Indoor board games include Puli Joodam,Carroms, Ashta Chamma, Dahdi, Vamagunatalu, Vaikuntapali, Gavalu Aataa and Chintha Ginjallu Aataa. Achenagandlu, Ramudu Sita, star, ashtachamma are indoor games played by children and elders. Kodi Pandelu (Hen fight) is the most popular gambling game played in West godavari district on the occasion of Sankranthi festival which has a turnover of Crores of Rupees.

[edit]Literature

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challengedand removed. (September 2009)

Main article: Telugu literature

Nannayya, Tikkana, and Yerrapragada form the trinity who translated the great Sanskrit epic Mahabharata into Telugu. BommeraPothana is the poet who composed the classic SriMad Maha Bhagavatamu, a Telugu translation of Sri Bhagavatham, authored by Veda Vyasa inSanskrit. Nannayya (c. 11th century AD), the earliest know Telugu author, was patronized by the king Rajaraja Narendra who ruled from Rajamahendravaram (now Rajahmundry). The Vijayanagara emperor Krishnadevaraya wrote Amuktamalyada. The Telugu poet Vemana, a native of Kadapa, is notable for his philosophical poems. Telugu literature after Kandukuri Veeresalingam(1848–1919) is termed modern literature. Known as Gadya Tikkana, Satyavathi Charitam was the author Telugu-language social novel,Satyavathi Charitam. Jnanpith Award winners include Sri Viswanatha Satya Narayana and Dr. C. Narayana Reddy. The Andhra Pradesh native and revolutionary poet Sri Sri brought new forms of expressionism into Telugu literature.

Other modern writers include Gunturu Seshendra Sarma, the only person nominated from India for a Nobel prize in literature sinceRabindranath Tagore. The West Bengal Government conferred on him the title Rashtrendu ("Moon of the Nation"). Telugu University awarded him an honorary Doctorate in Literature in 1994. He received the Kalidas Samman award from the Madhya Pradhesh government, and he won the Central Sahitya Akademi fellowship in 1999.

Seshendra's first work in print appeared in 1952.[1] It is the translation of Matthew Arnold's Sohrab and Rustum, which is based upon the Persian Epic Shahnama. Initially he focused on poetry and occasionally worked on literary criticism. Seshendra's first collection of prose-poems Sesha Jyotsna. He composed it strictly conforming to Telugu prosody which was published in 1972 in Telugu and English. Its translations into Hindi and Urdu appeared separately. His magnum opus was Naa Desham, Naa Prajalu (My Country, My People, Meri Dharti, Mere Log). It led to his nomination for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2004.

Shri Puttaparthi Narayanacharyulu is one of the scholarly poets of Telugu literature. He wrote the books Sivatandavam and Panduranga Mahatyam.

Other notable writers from Andhra Pradesh