Culture
Bapu's paintings, Nanduri Venkata Subba Rao's Yenki Paatalu (Songs about a washerwoman called Yenki), mischievous Budugu (a character by Mullapudi), Annamayya's songs, Aavakaaya (a variant of mango pickle in which the kernel of mango is retained), Gongura (a chutney from Roselle plant), Atla Taddi (a seasonal festival predominantly for teenage girls), the banks of river Godavari, and the Dudu basavanna (the ceremonial ox decorated for door-to-door exhibition during the harvest festival Sankranthi) have long defined Telugu culture. The village of Durgi is known for stone craft, producing carvings of idols in soft stone that must be exhibited in the shade because they are prone to weathering. Kalamkari is an ancient textile art form dating back to the Indus Valley Civilization. Andhra Pradesh is famous for doll making. Dolls are made from wood, mud, dry grass, and lightweight metal alloys. Tirupathi is famous for redwood carvings. Kondapalli is famous for mud toys with rich colors. The village of Etikoppaka, located in Visakhapatnam district, produces lacquered toys. Nirmal paintings are expressive and are usually painted over a black background. Story telling in Andhra Pradesh is an art form in itself. Folk dances unique to Andhra Pradesh include Yaksha ganam, Burra katha (usually done by three people, telling stories using three different musical instruments), Jangama kathalu, Hari kathalu, Chekka bajana, Urumula natyam (usually done at festivals, where a group of people dance in circles with loud music), and Ghata natyam (performances done with earthen pots over one's head).
Andhra Pradesh has many museums, the Salar Jung Museum in Hyderabad, which features a varied collection of sculptures, paintings, and religious artifacts, including the Archaeological Museum at Amaravati near Guntur City that features relics of nearby ancient sites, and the Visakha Museum, in Visakhapatnam, which displays the history of the pre-Independence and thotla konda which depicts the age old budhist stupa's and cultural style, 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. Other ancient sites include dozens of ancient Buddhist stupas in Nagarjunakonda which is now an island in Nagarjuna Sagar, an artificial lake that formed after the construction of Nagarjuna Sagar Dam. The Island has a large museum that houses many Buddhist relics.
Just like in other parts of the country, many festivals are celebrated in Andhra Pradesh, which include - Ugadi, Sankranthi, Dasara, Varalakshmi Vratham, Vinayaka Chavithi, Deepavali, Batukamma, Rakhi poornima, Christmas, Sri Rama Navami, Bonalu, Maha Shivaratri, Nagula Chaviti, Holi, Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-zuha, Muharram, Milad-un-Nabi etc.
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Famous quotes containing the word culture:
“The first time many women hold their tiny babies, they are apt to feel as clumsy and incompetent as any man. The difference is that our culture tells them they’re not supposed to feel that way. Our culture assumes that they will quickly learn how to be a mother, and that assumption rubs off on most women—so they learn.”
—Pamela Patrick Novotny (20th century)
“Our culture has become something that is completely and utterly in love with its parent. It’s become a notion of boredom that is bought and sold, where nothing will happen except that people will become more and more terrified of tomorrow, because the new continues to look old, and the old will always look cute.”
—Malcolm McLaren (b. 1946)
“The white dominant culture seemed to think that once the Indians were off the reservations, they’d eventually become like everybody else. But they aren’t like everybody else. When the Indianness is drummed out of them, they are turned into hopeless drunks on skid row.”
—Elizabeth Morris (b. c. 1933)