Jashuva was born to Virayya and Lingamma in Vinukonda, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India to a community of leather workers. His father belonged to the Yadav caste and his mother belonged to the Madigacaste. Due to poverty and the intercaste marriage of his parents, his childhood was difficult in a society in which some castes were considered "untouchable." Jashuva and his brother were raised by his parents as Christians. In order to fulfill the requirements of higher education, Jashuva obtained the diploma Ubhaya Bhasha Praveena as a scholar of Telugu and Sanskrit languages later in his life.
Career
Protests against "untouchability," Dalit rights, and segregation have been common themes in all of Jashuva's works. Some of the more notable entries into his literary canon include Gabbilam, Firadausi and Kandiseekudu. A number of verses from Jashuva's work have been incorporated into the popular mythological play, Harischandra, most notably during a scene set in the midst of a cremation ground. Dalit communities in Andhra Pradesh consider Jashuva to be the first modern Telugu Dalit poet, and actively protest his erasure from Telugu and Indian literary history. In 1995, Dalit communities in Andhra Pradesh began to organize various centennial celebrations for Jashuva's birth, and have recently begun efforts to revive the remembrance of his literary contributions.
Literary works
Gabbilam is Jashuva's best known work, fashioned after Kālidāsa's Meghadūta, in which an exiled lover attempts to communicate his affections to his beloved wife.
In one stanza, Jashuva writes, "To this friendly bat he began telling his life-story with a heart scorched by sorrow. In this senseless and arrogant world, other than lowly birds and insects, do the poor have any intimates or neighbors, any noble swans to explain his warm tears?" The man in the poem muses at the irony of his situation, wherein a bat is allowed inside a temple, yet not within a human being, requesting that the bat convey his message to Siva with caution. As the bat travelled to Lord Siva in Kasi, Jashuva utilized the feeling of patriotism, another theme significant to his work, through vivid descriptions of various historical locations throughout India from the perspective of the bat.
Timeline
Rukmini Kalyanam
Chidananda Prabhatham and Kushalavopakhyanam
Kokila
Dhruva Vijayam, Krishna Nadi and Samsara Saagaram
Shivaji Prabandham, Veera Bai, Krishna Deva Raayalu, Vemana Yogeendrudu and Bhaarata Maatha
Bhaarata Veerudu, Suryodayam, Chandrodayam and Gijigaadu
Ranachyuthi, Aandhrudanu and Thummeda Pendlikoduku
Sakhi, Buddhudu, Telugu Thalli, Sishuvu and Baashpa Sandesham
Deergha Nishwasamu, Prabodham, Shilpi, Hechcharika, Saaleedu and Maathru Prema
Bheeshmudu, Yugandhara Manthri, Sama Dhrushti, Nela Baaludu, Nemali Nelatha, Loka Baandhavudu, Anasuya, Shalya Saaradhyamu and Sandeha Dola
Endluri Sudhakar researched Gurram Jashua's literature and published a book on his outlook and impact.
Awards instituted in his memory
The Jashuva Sahitya Puraskaram was established by the Jashuva Foundation to distribute an annual prize to poets from varying Indian backgrounds for enriching Indian literature with their contributions. The founder and secretary, Hemalatha Lavanam, is Jashuva's daughter. Nilmani Phukan, an Assamese poet, received the award in 2002. Padma Bhushan Dr Gurram Jashuva Research Centre of Telugu Akademi distributes three awards to poets and writers for contributions to Telugu literature. These are the "Jashuva Jeevita Saphalya Puraskaram" for male poets aged sixty or above, the "Jashuva Visishta Mahila Purasakaram" for female poets aged fifty or above, and the "Jashuva Sahitya Visishta Puraskaram" for any contributor to Dalita sahityam. The first of these awards was presented on September 28, 2013, during the one-hundred-and-eighteenth anniversary of Gurram Jashuva's birth. A payment of two-hundred-thousand rupees are included with each award. Dasaradhi Rangacharya was awarded the "Jashuva Jeevita Saphalya Puraskaram" award, Kolakakuli Swaroopa Rani the "Jashuva Visishta Mahila Purasakaram" award, and Kaluva Mallaiah the "Jashuva Sahitya Visishta Puraskaram" award. Damodar Raja Narasimha, Deputy Chief Minister of India, Dokka Manikya Vara Prasad, Minister for Rural Development of India, Kaki Madhava Rao, former Chief Secretary of India, and Medasani Mohan all either hosted or participated in various award-related functions. A commemorative book on the poet was released during one of the functions.
