Gajam Govardhana is an Indian master weaver, known for his work in Ikkat dyeing in the

Telia Rumal Telia Rumal is a method for the oil treatment of yarn. It originated from Chirala in Andhra Pradesh. At Chirala, in the Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh where the craft started, the weavers had virtually stopped making Telia Rumals. People who ...

tradition, and for his handloom creations. In 2011 the government of India honoured him with the fourth-highest civilian award,

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

Biography

Govardhana was born 1 September 1949 in the small village of Putapakka in the

Nalgonda district Nalgonda district is a district in the Telangana state of India. Nalgonda district has the highest number of mandals in the state with 31 mandals. The district shares boundaries with Suryapet, Rangareddy, Yadadri and Nagarkurnool districts ...

of the south Indian state of

Telangana Telangana (; , ) is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India b ...

, part of the former

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

. He heads the

Padmashali Padmasali (also spelt as Padmashali, Padmasale) is a Hindu caste residing in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. Their traditional occupation is weaving. Etymology The term ''Padm ...

family, which keeps the

tradition alive, and employs 500 weavers in the state. He runs ''Murali Sari Emporium'', a favoured shopping place for celebrities such as

Sonia Gandhi Sonia Gandhi ('' née'' Maino; born 9 December 1946) is an Indian politician. She is the longest serving president of the Indian National Congress, a social democratic political party, which has governed India for most of its post-independ ...

Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of Hindi film, television and theatre. One of India's most acclaimed actresses, Azmi is known for her portrayals of distinctive, often unconventional female characters across several ge ...

and

Sheila Dikshit Sheila Dikshit () (née Kapoor; 31 March 1938 – 20 July 2019) was an Indian politician. The longest-serving Chief Minister of Delhi, as well as the longest-serving female chief minister of any Indian state, she served for a period of 15 yea ...

. Govardhana has written several articles and publications and received many awards, including a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Award of Excellence (2002), National Master Weaver Award (2006), Cheongju International Craft Biennale award, and the Shilpa Guru Award (2007). The

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

recognised his services to the art of weaving when he was included in the 2011 Republic Day honours.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Govardhana, Gajam 1949 births Living people Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Artists from Andhra Pradesh Indian weavers People from Nalgonda district

Biography

See also

References