Astadiggajas is the collective title given to the eight Telugu poets in the court of the emperor Sri Krishna Deva Raya who ruled the Vijayanagara Empire from 1509 until his death in 1529. During his reign, Telugu literature and culture reached its zenith. In his court, eight poets were regarded as the eight pillars of his literary assembly. The age of Astadiggajsa is called Prabandha Age (1540 AD to 1600). All of the Astadiggajalu had composed at least one Prabandha Kavyamu and it was Astadiggajalu who gave Prabanda its present form. Most of the Astadiggajas are from southern part of present day Andhra Pradesh state (Rayalaseema, Nellore) and Astadiggajas, Allasani Peddana, Dhurjati, Nandi Thimmana, Madayyagari Mallana and Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu are from the Rayalaseema region. Tenali Ramakrishna hailed from the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. |