Dhurjati

Dhurjati (or Dhoorjati) (c. 15th and 16th centuries, CE) was a Telugu poet in the court of the king Krishnadevaraya and was one of the astadiggajalu (literally eight legends) there.

He was born to Singamma and Narayana in Sri Kalahasti and was the grandson of Jakkayya. He was a great devotee of lord Shiva, also known as Kalahasteeshwara. He referred to his birthplace as part of Pottapi Nadu, named after an earlier Chola kingdom based from Pottapi in Cuddapah in his works.

His works are to the praise of the God Shiva. His famous works include Sri Kalahasteeshwara Mahatyam (The grace/miracles of lord Shiva) and Sri Kalahasteeshwara Satakam (100+ poems in the praise of lord Shiva).

He was known as Pedda Dhurjati (Elder in Telugu) Dhurjati as there were four other people from the same family line who went by the name of Dhurjati during the same period and after him. His grandson Venkataraya Dhurjati wrote Indumati Parinayam (marriage of Indumati), a story from Kalidasa's Raghuvamsa.

He is also credited with many chatuvus, stand-alone extempore poems.

Like other contemporaries during Prabandha period, he has taken themes from Puranas and added local stories and myths in his work. Unlike his contemporaries like Peddana and Mallana, who have chosen the stories of kings for their works, he choose devotion as the theme of his fiction.

Krishnadevaraya has praised Dhurjati in the following way "Stutimati yaina Andhrakavi Dhurjati palkulakelagalgeno yetulita madhuri mahima...." (How is Dhurjati's poetry so immeasurably beautiful)