Explained: What is Telangana Thalli and why new statue design has sparked political firestorm

Telangana CM Reddy speaks during the unveiling ceremony of the 'Telangana Thalli' (Mother Telangana) statue on the State Secretariat premises, in Hyderabad (PTI)

Telangana is experiencing a political upheaval after the Congress government led by chief minister A Revanth Reddy unveiled the new Telangana Thalli (Mother Telangana) statue at the state secretariat on Monday.

The event, which took place on Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's birthday, sparked a controversy.

Many people see the statue as more than a cultural symbol; it has become a site for debates about identity, political history and power in Telangana.

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the BJP have criticised the Congress government for removing symbols related to the statehood movement led by former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR). The Congress claims this redesign marks a new chapter for Telangana, but the opposition sees it as a deliberate effort to weaken KCR’s lasting legacy.

Political storm

The original Telangana Thalli statue was created in 2003 by artist B Venkataramana. It featured a pink silk saree, representing Telangana’s well-known Gadwal and Pochampalli silks. The statue held a Bathukamma pot, honouring the region’s famous festival and including maize cobs to symbolise agricultural wealth. The statue also had a crown, a gold waistband, and traditional toe rings that showed Telangana’s rich culture.

Congress's redesigned version changed the pink saree to green. It also removed the crown, the Bathukamma pot, and the waistband. Instead, the new statue shows an open palm, closely resembling the Congress party's symbol.

KT Rama Rao (KTR), the working president of BRS, was quick to criticise the recent changes to the Telangana Thalli statue.

“The Telangana Thalli statue shows our identity and was created by everyone during the statehood movement. Removing important features like the crown and Bathukamma is an insult to Telangana’s cultural pride. Why should our mother figure of Telangana look poor? This is a political attack on our history,” KTR said during a press briefing.

The BJP also disapproved, accusing Congress of changing an important symbol. BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya said: “This is an attack on Telangana’s cultural roots. By removing the crown and adding the Congress’s open palm symbol, they have disrespected the sacrifices made during the statehood fight.” BJP state president G Kishan Reddy agreed, calling it “the Congress’s attempt to rewrite history for political gain.”

Chief Minister Revanth Reddy defended the redesign, calling the opposition’s criticism “cheap political theatrics.” At the unveiling ceremony, he emphasised the Congress’s role in creating Telangana, particularly mentioning Sonia Gandhi’s contributions.

“Thanks to the Gandhi family’s sacrifices and vision, we have Telangana. This statue marks a fresh start, moving away from the past decade of corruption and misrule. The BRS is eager to politicise even a cultural symbol,” Reddy said.

However, some Congress members were wary. A senior leader, who wished to remain anonymous, pointed out that the redesign has political risks. “We cannot ignore the strong feelings people have for the original statue. The opposition will likely use this issue to their benefit, so we must be careful not to lose voter support,” the leader remarked.

Fight for legacy

The disagreement over Telangana Thalli is about legacy. For the BRS party, the statue represents its leadership during the Telangana statehood movement. This movement helped KCR rise to power and made him a key figure in the struggle for Telangana. The Congress party’s redesign of the statue is seen as an effort to change this narrative and diminish that connection.

KTR’s threat to bring back the original statue if the BRS regains power shows how important this issue is. “This is not just a statue. It represents the identity of every person from Telangana. We will not allow the Congress to change our history,” KTR said.

The BJP has taken this opportunity to present itself as a defender of Telangana’s cultural pride. As the state becomes a crucial battleground, the BJP hopes to use this controversy to strengthen its voter base and position itself as an alternative to Congress and the BRS.

Notably, Congress's government is sticking to its decision. To support its message, the redesigned Telangana Thalli will be included in state textbooks alongside the official state song, "Jaya Jayahe Telangana." School Education Director EV Narasimha Reddy confirmed that the government has approved the new image for the academic year 2025-26.

The bilingual textbooks have already started printing. To help non-English-medium students, the books will be available in Telugu-English, Urdu-English, and Hindi-English versions. The updated curriculum, which follows the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2023, is part of a larger plan to improve education and include local culture.