List of Indian Poets - Telugu

Telugu

• Gona Budda Reddy - 13th century poet
• Annamacharya (1408–1503), mystic saint composer of the 15th century, widely regarded as the Telugu pada kavita pitaamaha (grand old man of simple poetry); husband of Tallapaka Tirumalamma
• Aarudhra, pen name of Bhagavatula Siva Sankara Sastry (1925–1998), author, poet, essayist, writer of stories (including detective stories), playwright, translator, composer of film songs
• Balijepalli Lakshmikantham, (1881–1953), poet and dramatist
• Chellapilla Venkata Sastry
• Devulapalli Krishna Sastry (1887–1981), poet and writer of radio plays, known as "Andhra Shelly"
• Divakarla Tirupati Sastry
• Errana also known as "Yellapregada" or "Errapregada" (fl. 14th century), poet in the court of Prolaya Vemareddy who ruled areas in the future state of Andhra Pradesh; third poet of the Kavi Trayam, or "Trinity of Poets", that translated Mahabharatamu into Telugu over the course of a few centuries: he concluded the project by translating the half-finished "Aranya Parvamu" in the mode of Nannaya Bhattaraka and then shifting to that of Tikkana as a bridge between the two styles; honored with the title Prabandha Parameshwara ("the supreme lord of Prabandha") and Shambudasusu belonged to Srivatsa gotram and Apastambha sutram of the Brahmin caste
• Gurajada Apparao (1862–1915) poet, writer and playwright who wrote the first Telugu play, Kanyasulkam; also an influential social reformer sometimes called Mahakavi ("the great poet")
• Jwalamukhi pen name of Veeravalli Raghavacharyulu (1938–2008), poet, novelist, writer and political activist
• Kandukuri Veeresalingam (1848–1919), social reformer, poet, scholar, founded the journal Vivekavardhani, introduced the essay, biography, autobiography and the novel into Telugu literature
• Molla, also known as "Mollamamba", both popular names of Atukuri Molla (1440–1530) poet who wrote Telugu Ramayan; a woman
• Nannaya Bhattaraka, also known as the First Poet "Aadi Kavi", the first poet of the Kavi Trayam, or "Trinity of Poets", that translated Mahabharatamu into Telugu over the course of a few centuries
• Potana, born Bammera Pothana (1450–1510), poet best known for his translation of the Bhagavata Purana from Sanskrit; the book is popularly known as Pothana Bhagavatham
• Rayaprolu Subba Rao
• C. R. Reddy
• Sri Sri – Srirangam Srinivasa Rao (1910–1983)
• Tallapaka Tirumalamma, also known as "Timmakka" and "Thimmakka" (fl. 15th century) poet who wrote Subhadra Kalyanam; wife of singer-poet Annamacharya and was popularly known as Timmakka
• Tikkana also called "Tikkana Somayaji" (1205–1288) a poet born into a literary family during the Golden Age of Kakatiya dynasty; the second poet of the Kavi Trayam, or "Trinity of Poets", that translated Mahabharatamu into Telugu over the course of a few centuries; he translated last 15 chapters, but didn’t touch the half-finished Aranya Parvamu; the other two poets were Nannaya Bhattaraka and Errana
• Timmakka – see Tallapaka Tirumalamma
• Vemana (fl. 14th century) poet, many of whose poems are now colloquial phrases in Telugu; a yogi or yogi-like person whose poems, in a simple style, are all in the Ataveladi ("dancing lady") meter, dealing with mystic, satirical, moral and social subjects, including social problems and challenging traditions; he is often portrayed in the nude
• Viswanatha Satyanarayana (1895–1976), popularly known as the Kavi Samraat ("Emperor of Poetry")

Modern Poets

• C. Narayana Reddy (born 1931), poet, academic and songwriter
• Ismail, popular name of Mohammad Ismail (born 1928)
• Suravaram Pratap Reddy - Writer and historian from Telangana
• Kethu Viswanatha Reddy - Poet from Rayalaseema