Indian Tourist Places

Andhra Pradesh has many museums, including the Archaeological Museum at Amaravati near Guntur City that features relics of nearby ancient sites, the Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad, which features a varied collection of sculptures, paintings, and religious artifacts and the Visakha Museum in Visakhapatnam, which displays the history of the pre-Independence Madras Presidency in a rehabilitated Dutch bungalow. Victoria Jubilee Museum in Vijayawada has a good collection of ancient sculptures, paintings, idols, weapons, cutlery and inscriptions.

Picture: Kuchipudi, the traditional dance of Andhra

Cuisine

The Pradesh is reputedly the spiciest and the most delicious of all Indian cuisines. There are many variations to the cuisine of Andhra Andhra cuisine depending on caste, geographical regions, traditions etc. Pickles and chutneys, called pachchadi in Telugu are particularly popular in Andhra Pradesh and many varieties of pickles and chutneys are unique to the State. Chutneys are made from practically every vegetable including tomatoes, brinjals (eggplant), and roselle (Gongura). The mango pickle Aavakaaya is probably the best known of the Andhra pickles.

Rice is the staple food and is used in a wide variety of ways. Typically, rice is either boiled and eaten with curry, or made into a batter for use in a crepe-like dish called attu (pesarattu) or dosas.

Meat, vegetables and greens are prepared with different spices (masala) into a variety of strongly flavoured dishes.

Hyderabadi cuisine is influenced by the Muslims who arrived in Telangana in the 14th century. Much of the cuisine revolves around meat. It is rich and aromatic, with a liberal use of exotic spices and ghee (clarified butter). Lamb, chicken and fish are the most widely used meats in the non-vegetarian dishes. The biryani is perhaps the most distinctive and popular of Hyderabadi dishes.

Dances

Jayapa Senani (Jayapa Nayudu) is the first person who wrote about the dances prevalent in Andhra Pradesh. Both Desi and Margi forms of dances have been included in his Sanskrit treatise ‘Nritya Ratnavali’. It contains eight chapters. Folk dance forms like Perani, Prenkhana, Suddha Nartana, Carcari, Rasaka, Danda Rasaka, Shiva Priya, Kanduka Nartana, Bhandika Nrityam, Carana Nrityam, Chindu, Gondali and Kolatam are described. In the first chapter the author deals with discussion of the differences between Marga and Desi, Tandava and lasya, Natya and Nritta. In the 2nd and 3rd chapters he deals with Angi-kabhinaya, Caris, Sthanakas and Mandalas. In the 4th Chapter Karnas, angaharas and recakas are described. In following chapters he described the local dance forms i.e. desi nritya. In the last chapter he deals with art and practice of dance.

Classical dance in Andhra can be performed by both men and women; however women tend to learn it more often. Kuchipudi is the state’s best-known classical dance forms of Andhra Pradesh. The various dance forms that existed through the states’ history are Chenchu Bhagotham, Kuchipudi, Bhamakalapam, Burrakatha, Veeranatyam, Butta bommalu, Dappu, Tappeta Gullu, Lambadi, Bonalu, Dhimsa, Kolattam and chindu .

Festivals

    * Sankranthi in January.
    * Maha Shivaratri in February/March.
    * Ugadi or the Telugu New Year in March/April.
    * Sri Rama Navami celebrated in March/April, 9 days after Ugadi.
    * Varalakshmi Vratham in August.
    * Vinayaka Chavithi in August.
    * Dasara in September/October.
    * Atla Tadde 3rd day in bright half of Aswiyuja month (falls in September/October in Gregorian calendar)
    * Deepavali in October/November.
    * Bonalu in Sravanam. (Celebrated in Telangana region).
    * Bathukamma celebrated during September/October in Telangana region.

Literature

Nannayya, Tikkana, and Yerrapragada form the trinity who translated the great Sanskrit epic Mahabharatha into Telugu. Bammera Potana is another great poet who composed the great classic SriMad Andhra Maha Bhagavatamu, a Telugu translation of Sri Bhagavatham authored by Veda Vyasa in Sanskrit. Nannayya is called as ‘Adikavi’. Nannaya was patronized by the king Rajarajanarendra who ruled from Rajamahendravaram (Rajahmundry). Vijayanagara emperor Krishna Deva Raya wrote Amuktamalyada. Philosophical poems by Yogi-Vemana are quite famous throughout the Telugu land. Telugu literature after Kandukuri Veeresalingam is termed as Modern literature. Veerasalingam is called as ‘Gadya Tikkana’. Satyavathi Charitam was the first social novel in Telugu. Rajashekara Charitham was the most popular novel written by Veerasalingam. Other modern writers include Jnanpith Award winners Sri Viswanatha Satya Narayana and Dr. C. Narayana Reddy. Revolutionary poets like Sri Sri are also popular.

Movies

Andhra Pradesh is the state with the most cinema halls in India, at around 3000[citation needed]. The state also produces about 200[citation needed] movies a year. It has around 40%, 330 cinema halls out of 930 DTS cinema halls in India [15] of all the Dolby digital theatres in India. Now it also houses an IMax theatre with a big 3D screen and also 3-5 multiplexes. It is also the largest movie industry in India, producing more movies than any other industry.

Music

The state has a rich musical heritage. Many legends of the Carnatic music including Trinity of Carnatic music (Thyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri) were of Telugu descent. Other great composers include Annamacharya, Kshetrayya, and Bhadrachala Ramadasu. Folk songs are also popular in the rural areas of the state.

Religion

Andhra Pradesh is home to Hindu saints of all castes. An important backward-caste figure is, Sant Yogi Potuluri Veerabrahmam was a Shudra that had Brahmin, Harijan and Muslim disciples.[16] Fisherman Raghu was also a Sudra. Sant Kakkayya was a chura (cobbler) Harijan saint.

Several important Hindu modern-day saint are from Andhra Pradesh. These include Nimbarka who founded Dvaitadvaita, Mother Meera who advocated Indian independence and Aurobindo Mission, Bala Sai Baba who advocates religious unity in worship, Satya Sai Baba who does the same, and Swami Sundara Chaitanyanandaji.

His Holiness Satya Sai Baba is from a Kshatriya family and was born on 23rd November 1926 in Puttaparthi. He is renowned worldwide as a master of love and peace. He is believed to be the avatar of Shirdi Sai Baba. Sathya Sai Organization has many branches worldwide. Its member are from all religions and seek to establish peace in the world.

His Holiness Swami Sundara Chaitanyanandaji was born on 25th December 1947 in Kattubadipalem village, sri potti sreeramulu Nellore District, Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh is also home for Christians and Muslims who form minor part of population in this state.

Revised and adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andhra_Pradesh