Gaddar
Indian poet and activist (1949–2023)
title: "Gaddar" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1949-births", "2023-deaths", "telugu-politicians", "indian-male-folk-singers", "people-from-medak", "telugu-poets", "activists-from-telangana", "naxalites", "poets-from-telangana", "20th-century-indian-poets", "indian-marxists", "deaths-from-lung-disease", "deaths-from-urologic-disease"] description: "Indian poet and activist (1949–2023)" topic_path: "philosophy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaddar" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Indian poet and activist (1949–2023) ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox Indian politician"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Gaddar |
| image | Gaddar in 2005.jpg |
| caption | Rao in 2005 |
| birth_name | Gummadi Vittal Rao |
| birth_date | |
| birth_place | Toopran, Hyderabad State, Dominion of India |
| (01 November 1956 to 02 June 2014 Andhra Pradesh) (02 June 2014-Telangana), India | |
| death_date | |
| death_place | Hyderabad, Telangana, India |
| residence | Hyderabad, Telangana, India |
| alma_mater | Osmania University |
| party | Telangana Praja Front |
| spouse | Vimala Gaddar |
| occupation | |
| :: |
| name = Gaddar | image = Gaddar in 2005.jpg | caption = Rao in 2005 | birth_name = Gummadi Vittal Rao | birth_date = | birth_place = Toopran, Hyderabad State, Dominion of India (01 November 1956 to 02 June 2014 Andhra Pradesh) (02 June 2014-Telangana), India | death_date = | death_place = Hyderabad, Telangana, India | residence = Hyderabad, Telangana, India | alma_mater = Osmania University | party = Telangana Praja Front | spouse = Vimala Gaddar | occupation =
Gummadi Vittal Rao (31 January 1949 – 6 August 2023), known as Gaddar, was an Indian poet, singer, and communist revolutionary. Gaddar was active in the Naxalite–Maoist insurgency, as well as the movement for Telangana's statehood.
Gaddar began his political and cultural journey as a Naxalite in the 1970s. Arrested during the Emergency in 1975, he later went underground. Despite controversies, he remained a prominent voice against caste oppression and injustices faced by Dalits and Adivasis. He was one of the founding member of the cultural wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) People’s War. He also founded the Jana Natya Mandali. He played a major role in drawing national attention to the Karamchedu massacre in 1987.
He was awarded with a cash award of ₹1 crore posthumously for his contributions to the Telangana movement.
Early life
Gaddar was born as Gummadi Vithal Rao at Toopran in the Medak district of Telangana in 1949. While studying engineering in Hyderabad, he became influenced by the revolutionary ideas of the Dalit Panthers and the Naxalbari movement.
Gaddar went underground in the 1980s and became a member of Communist Party of India (Marxist–Leninist) People's War. He was part of its cultural wing and performed for crowds. A bullet remained in his spine after an assassination attempt in 1997.{{Cite web|title=Rebel balladeer Gaddar backs Congress|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/rebel-balladeer-gaddar-backs-congress/cid/1671726 |access-date=2021-01-03|website=ap7am.com/}}
Until 2010, Gaddar was active in the Naxal movement, later identifying himself as an Ambedkarite. He adopted the name Gaddar as a tribute to the pre-independence Gadar party, which opposed British colonial rule in Punjab.
Telangana movement
With the resurgence of Telangana movement, Gadar expressed his support for the cause of a separate Telangana state, which intended to uplift the lower castes, particularly dalits and backward castes. He said that he was strongly aligned with those who are for a state in favor of social justice where scheduled tribes and scheduled castes have political representation on par with the OCs and BCs of the state. He expressed his solidarity with Devender Goud's NTPP (Nava Telangana Praja Party) despite being shot at by the police during Goud's term as AP home minister.
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/Gaddar_performs_in_Kolkata.jpg" caption="Gaddar performing in [[Kolkata]] in 2010 against [[Operation Green Hunt]]"] ::
Illness and death
Suffering from severe heart disease, Gaddar was admitted to a Hyderabad hospital on 20 July 2023 where he underwent bypass surgery on 3 August 2023. While recovering from surgery, he died from lung and urinary problems on 6 August 2023 at age 74.
Discography
::data[format=table]
| Year | Movie | Song | Lyricist | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Maa Bhoomi | Bandenaka Bandi Katti | Bandi Yadagiri | ||
| 1983 | Rangula Kala | Jam Jammalmarri | Devi Priya | Also actor | |
| Bhadram Koduko | Guda Anjaiah | ||||
| Madhana Sundari | |||||
| 1995 | Orey Rikshaw | Malle Theegaku | Gaddar | ||
| Aapura Rikshowda | |||||
| Jatharelli Podame | |||||
| Naa Raktham Tho Naduputhanu Rikshawnu | |||||
| Rajyangam Chattamandu | |||||
| Gana Gana Gana | |||||
| Amma Kanna | |||||
| 2011 | Jai Bolo Telangana | Podustunna Poddumeeda | |||
| Poru Telangana | Podustunna Poddumeeda | ||||
| 2016 | Dandakaranyam | Bharata Desam | Also actor | ||
| Podduthirugudu Puvva | |||||
| Adavi Thalliki Vandanam | |||||
| :: |
Awards
- 1995: Nandi Award for Best Lyricist for "Malletheega Ku Pandiri Vole" from Orey Rikshaw (turned down)
- 2011: Nandi Award for Best Male Playback Singer for Jai Bolo Telangana
References
References
- (2024-01-31). "Gaddar's birth anniversary on January 31 to be celebrated as state function".
- Jangam, Chinnaiah. (10 August 2023). "Gaddar (1949-2023): His voice inspired resistance to oppression".
- Kartheek, B.. (7 August 2023). "Gaddar: Revolutionary poet who fought for statehood".
- Apparasu, Srinivasa Rao. (6 August 2023). "Popular balladeer and former Maoist ideologue Gaddar passes away". Hindustan Times.
- (2 June 2025). "Telangana Formation Day 2025". The Hindu.
- (6 August 2023). "Telangana folk singer Gaddar passes away". [[The Hindu]].
- (7 August 2023). "Renowned Telangana folk singer Gaddar passes away at 77".
- Swamy, Rohini. (2018-12-04). "In Telangana, Naxal poet Gaddar embraces the ballot & old foes to fight 'fundamentalists'".
- Biluka, Nirmala. (12 August 2023). "Gaddar: A lion falls silent".
- Kappal, Bhanuj. (13 Aug 2023). "Gaddar and the end of an era in Indian music". [[Mint (newspaper).
- Satyanarayana, K.. (30 August 2023). "Gaddar: The radical performer and cultural icon of Telangana".
- (18 January 2008). "Fight forces opposing separate Telangana, says Gadar". The Hindu.
- (20 January 2008). "Telangana minus Hyderabad unimaginable: Gadar". [[The Hindu]].
- (5 February 2008). "Smaller States viable, say leaders". [[The Hindu]].
- (6 August 2023). "Renowned Telangana folk singer Gummadi Vittal Rao, popularly known as 'Gaddar', passes away". [[The Times of India]].
- (6 August 2023). "Telangana: Poet activist Gaddar passes away at 77". The Siasat Daily.
- "Telangana Poet Gaddar, Known For His Revolutionary Songs, Dies At 77". NDTV.
- (6 August 2023). "Famed Folk Singer Gaddar Passes Away at Apollo Hospital".
- (23 March 2015). "Maa Bhoomi will forever be alive in people's minds".
- (9 November 2020). "''Orey Rikshaw'' completes 25 years; Lesser-known facts about the R Narayana Murthy starrer". The Times of India.
- (2 June 2021). "Telangana Formation Day 2021: Folk Songs that Ignited Passion During Statehood Movement".
- (2020-11-09). "''Orey Rikshaw'' completes 25 years; Lesser-known facts about the R Narayana Murthy starrer".
- "2011 Nandi Awards winners list". [[The Times of India]].
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