‘Triveni’ – The Champion of Nationalism

Andavilli Satyanarayana

‘Triveni’, the journal of Indian Renaissance, started its publication from Madras in December, 1927 under the Editorship of Sri Kolavennu Rama Koteswara Rao garu. This is Platinum Jubilee year of the remarkable journal which has completed 75 years of its useful service. During this period, it has gone through several hardships and changed its publication to many places and a number of persons willingly came forward but at no stage was there any compromise on the high idealism and lofty principles which the founder-editor Sri Kolavennu had before him as an article of faith. It is no mean tribute to the journal and to “lofty-minded and high-souled” founder that several eminent men took it upon themselves the responsibility of keeping it going just as a labour of love for an unusual venture by a very unusual man whose single minded devotion marked him out to be not one in a thousand, “but one in a million or even more.”

In 1934, just seven years after it came into existence by which time it had already impressed some of the finest intellectuals of the country, a committee was formed to save the Journal with Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the then Vice-chancellor of Andhra University as Chairman and V. V. Giri, K. Srinivasan of the Hindu, B. Gopal Reddy and B. Ramachandra Reddy as members. In its appeal the Committee said: “He has won for Triveni a position of eminence in the world of journalism. On the financial side however, it has not been a success. The Editor is even now struggling against heavy odds….. After seven years of intense labour and hardship, he is not able to place the venture on a financially sound footing. We therefore appeal strongly that lovers of Indian culture and thought ought to bestir themselves and lighten his burden.”

To have survived for 75 years from that position even at the earliest stage is a saga of commitment to values at a great sacrifice. It is something to be etched in Gold. It also hoped that “freed from the stress of continuous financial worry, the Editor will be able to raise the standard of excellence.”

Paying a rich tribute, his contemporary and an eminent Journalist himself in his engrossing auto-biography, “Street of Ink”, K. Iswara Dutt said: “One of the earliest to come under the influence of Mahatma Gandhi Sri Ramakoteswara Rao left the bar to be one of the most sincere and silent workers in the cause of the congress. After a spell at Swarajya, he was for some years Principal of Andhra Jateeya Kalasala in Machilipatnam…Finally, he sponsored ‘Triveni’ and has since never looked back from his undivided love for it. It seemed to answer his life’s purpose, his scholarly disposition, highly cultivated mind, exquisite taste and quiet devotion to the things which he sets his heart on…..Sincerely loved and truly respected he stands almost alone in enjoying the prestige which comes from honesty and courage”.

Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramaiah, the great historian of Congress and confidante of Gandhi warned Sri Koteswara Rao when he was struggling to keep the journal alive, “against his expensive taste and the pursuit of the unattainable and pleaded with him not to try to soar when he could hardly walk.” But, still Dr. Pattabhi appealed to all those who mattered to help the Journal in his characteristic way. He wrote; “I have never sought help of you because I do not want it for myself, and you have enough calls on you. But, this ‘Triveni’ must be as much your concern as the Editor’s or mine. I ask for your generous support and shall be satisfied if you sign away a cheque for Rs.500. You are at liberty to give more.”

In the earlier years, Iswara Dutt helped him in enlisting the support of important persons. “We were pledged to devote our mornings and evenings to contacts and collections in the city, we covered every part of the city of Madras – by bus and train, in rickshaws and on foot whichever was convenient,” he wrote. When all the efforts made did not yield desired results, Ramakoteswara Rao was frustrated but still kept it alive for decades, “now shifting the office to salubrious Bangalore, now bringing it back to Madras and converting it sometime into a bi-monthly or even a quarterly.”

Illustrious contributors to the Journal included persons like Sri Aurobindo, Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, C. Rajagopalachari, Rt. Hon. V. S. Srinivasa Sastri, Jawaharlal Nehru, J. Krishna Murti, Dr. Pattabhi, K. M. Munshi, M. Chalapati Rao, N. Raghunathan, Masti Venkatesa Iyengar, Prof. M. Venkata Rangaiah, Prof. K. R. Srinivas Iyengar and Prof. V. K. Gokak and the list is a veritable “Who is Who,” among the renowned scholars, writers and nationalists of the day.

The Silver Jubilee celebrations of ‘Triveni’ were held in Bangalore in 1954. Then a special number was released in the presence of Masti Venkata Iyengar, Sampathgiri Rao, Navartna Rama Rao, Nittor Srinivasa Rao, Katuri Venkateswara Rao, Modali Sivakamaiah and Bhavaraju Narasimha Rao.

The Golden Jubilee was celebrated in 1978 and by then Ramakoteswara Rao passed away and Bhavaraju Narasimha Rao had taken over the responsibility as Editor. At the function held in Madras, Smt. Rukmini Devi and Prof. K .R. Srinivasa Iyengar participated and eulogised the services of Ramakoteswara Rao. The Golden Jubilee number was released in Machilipatnam on May 7, 1978 by Dr. B. Gopala Reddy.

Very eminent persons contributed articles to that special issue. Member of the advisory Board of ‘Triveni’ for a long time and a good friend of Ramakoteswara Rao who stood by him through thick and thin, K. Chandrasekharan, wrote in that number: “If ‘Triveni’ was his own choice of life, it did not stand in the way of his joining the national movement, whenever an occasion offered itself for his sacrifice. On one such long interregnum in jail, he had to seek the devoted services of Sri Sampathgiri Rao of Bangalore to keep the Journal alive till his return from incarceration.”

In the same issue, Mr. A. S. Raman, a very distinguished journalist and Art critic wrote: “He deeply loved everything that was genuinely Andhra and, through his magazine sought to project it to the outside world in the most evocative manner possible. Apparently, according to him, regionalism, not chauvinism, was the basis of true nationalism, as nationalism was the basis of true Internationalism. He was a Gandhian….He was a romantic with a healthy passion for the finer things of life such as Art, Literature, theatre and even Cinema, but with a feeling for the realities of the freedom struggle which he faced manfully.”

The Diamond Jubilee of ‘Triveni’ was celebrated in April 1989 in Guntur. It was during that period CVN Dhan of Guntur and Dr. Bhavaraju Narasimha Rao were co-editors. A special number was released by the Vice-Chairman of UGC Prof. K. Satchidanand Murthy and Editor of ‘Visalandhra’ C. Raghavachari presided over it. In the Editorial comment, reputed Journalist D. Anjaneyulu who was its Associate Editor wrote: “In 1950, Dr. Bhavaraju Narasimha Rao took over as Managing Editor and publisher. He was to Ramakoteswara Rao, the Founder-Editor what Hanuman was to Rama. He has held the responsibility as a sacred trust; with single-minded devotion and self-effacing modesty.”

This issue contains some of the articles written by very eminent persons in the early years of its publication and it is connoisseur’s veritable gold mine. A fine poem by Sri Aurobindo in 1933 issue on “Shiva, the Inconscient Creator” was reprinted in it. Rabindranath Tagore’s “The Babe”, a poem unpublished in India till then and published in 1982 issue finds place in this number. There are quite a good number of articles by Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, published in several issues of ‘Triveni’. In 1934, in his article “Religion - a plea for sanity,” he writes: “The great religious tradition of India can be preserved only if we avoid the two extremes of atheism and blind faith and strive for right thinking and right living.”

In his salutations to Ramakoteswara Rao, Dr. B. Gopala Reddy, who was his student in Andhra Jateeya Kalasala in Machilipatnam in 1923 said that he had campaigned for him in 1937 in Narasaraopet constituency for the Madras Assembly which he had won with comfortable majority. His tenure in the Assembly was short-lived as in 1939, the ministry resigned. They were later co-prisoners in Tanjore Jail.

In 1989, Dr. Bhavaraju Narsimha Rao shifted to Hyderabad and formed a Trust under the name ‘TRIVENI FOUNDATION’. He continued it as quarterly in partnership with Prof. I. V. Chalapati Rao till he passed away in 1993. Prof. Chalapati Rao, a reputed teacher of English and a writer of chaste English, willingly shouldered the responsibility of keeping the Journal going as its Editor, maintaining all along the high traditions and ethical values with which the Founder-editor started it. When Dr. Bhavaraju and Prof. Chalapati Rao jointly edited, it was released in Hyderabad by Swami Ranganadhananda, the President of Ramakrishna Mission. In the special issue of 2003 (Jan-March) readers found samples of vintage articles or poems of yesteryears. The special number of 2003 (Jan-March) was released by Swami Paramarthananda of Ramakrishna Math. Now Prof. Chalapati Rao is the Editor and Chairman of the Foundation and Sri Vemaraju Narasimha Rao is the Managing Trustee.

That briefly is the story of one of the rare journals which survived several hardships and left a deep impact on the minds of generations of discerning readers for its adherence to high principles at all costs. It is surprising that at every stage when it was almost on the verge of closure, many eminent men in public life took it upon themselves as their sacred task to help it going using their influence and power. Ramakoteswara Rao’s gallant struggle in running a periodical without compromising at any stage with its avowed ideals can be compared to that of another eminent Journalist of Andhra, Khasa Subba Rao, Editor of Swatantra and later “Swarajya”. Both of them have carved a niche for themselves in the history of periodical journalism in the country with their ‘Triveni’ and ‘Swatantra’.

Prof. I. V. Chalapati Rao in his ‘Triple stream’ in the special issue says; “Ramakoteswara Rao lived like a crusader and died like a martyr for the cause of higher journalism. His name is indissolubly linked with the long standing and ever popular journal which has now completed 75 years of service to the reading public.”

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