Coimbatore :
The booming cotton business attracted the Telugu community to the city in 1970s. Andhra Pradesh also being cotton producing state then and the growth of Coimbatore nearby as an industrial belt, the textile city was naturally a place for many Telugus to come and set up their business.
Down the years, many Telugus who came to work in banks and IT sectors also made the city as their second home.
ASN Murthy, a chartered accountant from Andhra Pradesh, came to the city in 1970s to prepare for his CA exams and completed the course successfully. He then entered into cotton business and being quite successful settled in the city.
Murthy, who is also the secretary of the Coimbatore Telugu Samithi, said several people like him from the neighbouring state have made the city their second home.
“Coimbatore is a peaceful and enterprising place where anyone who is willing to work hard can prosper. This has brought many from our region to this city,” he said.
Though the Telugu community is known as a prosperous community, Murthy said they were a heterogeneous community. “Apart from businessmen, there are professionals like doctors and chartered accountants to labourers from our state who have come and made this their home,” he said.
Organisations like Telugu Samithi organise events and celebrate festivals like Ugadi and Samkranthi to keep their culture alive. Folk dances and traditional programmes are held on a regular basis. Traditional art forms including folk dramas and kuchippudi are also conducted.
“We still include mango pickles and other traditional Telugu dishes in our regular diet. We have integrated into the city at the same time maintain our culture,” said Murthy.
“There is a large number of Telugu speaking people who had settled down here many decades back. They speak Telugu though they may not be able to read or write Telugu,” said Rajesh Govindarajulu, a history enthusiast.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Coimbatore / by Arun P. Mathew, TNN / May 12th, 2014