Photo: Deccan Chronicle Kothapalli Jayashankar (6 August 1934 – 21 June 2011) – popularly known as Professor Jayashankar , he was an Indian academic, social activist, and the leading ideologue of the Telangana Movement . He fought for a separate Telangana state for six decades , beginning in 1952. Born in Akkampet village in the Atmakur mandal of Warangal district in the erstwhile Hyderabad State, Jayashankar was a rare blend of a brilliant academic, an efficient administrator, a powerful intellectual, and an inspiring thinker‑activist. He is widely regarded as the intellectual father of the Telangana statehood movement. A renowned scholar who completed two Master's degrees in Economics –…

Photo: Wikimedia Commons Pamulaparti Venkata Narasimha Rao (28 June 1921 – 23 December 2004) – the 10th Prime Minister of India (1991–1996), widely regarded as one of the principal architects of India's economic reforms and remembered by many admirers as "Modern India's Chanakya" . Born in Laknepalli village in the present-day Warangal district of Telangana, and raised in Vangara village (historically in Karimnagar district, now Hanamkonda district) after being adopted at the age of three, Rao became the first Prime Minister born in South India and the first Telugu native speaker to become Prime Minister of India . A renowned polyglot reputed to know around 17 languages, he…

Mahamandalesvara Prola II (c. 1116 – 1158 CE) – The Architect of Kakatiya Independence was a pivotal Kakatiya chief who transformed his family from loyal feudatories of the Western Chalukyas into a sovereign power. Son of Beta II, Prola II ascended during a period of Chalukya decline and skillfully navigated the turbulent politics of the Deccan. His reign marked the beginning of Kakatiya imperial expansion, laying the foundation for the great empire that would later be built by his son Rudradeva and grandson Ganapatideva. The earliest known record of his reign is the Padmakshi Temple inscription of 24 December 1117 CE , which mentions his title "Lord of Anmakonda". Prola II is cred…