The man with the midas touch

ABK Prasad is a genius blessed with a sharp mind and endowed with the rare gift of presenting a perfect blend of prose and poetry in his sometimes scathing, sometimes analytical, but most of the times straightfrom-the-heart writings. As a journalist, his writings are marked by lucid touch and fluency of expression. Simple, yet powerful and driving his point home, he is known for his eloquence stemming from rich experience. “The newspapers he headed grew in stature and power. His immaculate dressing sense, a white kurta-pyjama sometimes overlapped by a waistcoat, held a mirror to his down to earth personality, bereft of empty noise and swagger. He gave a robust look to whichever newspaper he helmed and shepherded.

Because of his success with Eenadu which became a super hit, every newspaper management vied to enlist his stewardship. Little wonder, therefore, Prasad became a lucky mascot for the dailies that tasted roaring success. “ABK, as he was fondly called, carried members of his dedicated team whenever he moved to another newspaper.” Dr Anne Bhavani Koteswara Rao Prasad is referred to with reverence as the doyen of vernacular journalism of Andhra Pradesh. With a colorful journalistic career spanning three quarters of a century, ABK has the rare distinction and honour of being the Editor of all the mainstream Telugu dailies of AP. He started his career as a sub editor with Visalaandhra, a popular leftist daily, in 1955 and went on to become the Editor of Janashakthi, another leftist journal from Vizag. “Eenadu, which he had launched in Visakhapatnam in 1974, redefined Telugu journalism and gave a new direction to it. In 1980, he was the Chief Editor of Dasari Narayan Rao’s new Telugu daily Udayam which created ripples in the media circles. With his Midas touch, he earned the title of “The Launching Editor of Telugu Journalism” and played a stellar role in rejuvenating vernacular journalism with sharp and incisive editorials. He became a lucky mascot for Telugu dailies. As the Editor of Andhra Jyothi daily, he launched regional editions from Hyderabad and Tirupati.

Recognising his talent, Andhra Prabha of the Indian Express group made him Editor-in-Chief. “Telugu journalism witnessed new vistas on account of his bold and innovative ideas. The net result was the circulation of the dailies whichever he headed soared to dizzy heights along with Advertising revenue. The AP government gave him the editorial reins of its journal Andhra Pradesh.” In an interview recently, ABK shared some secrets of his success. He said, “there are no short cuts in any vocation. Journalism is no exception. A journalist should never be impatient in his dealings with men and matters. You can be accommodative in letter and spirit while being shrewd. Never lose your point while extracting from the other side.”

The octogenarian lives at Chandra Rajeswara Rao Old Age Home at Kondapur. ABK keeps himself relentlessly busy even at this ripe age. He says he spent seven decades in the profession starting as sub editor, correspondent, editor, specialist in interviewing personalities and ultimately as Editor-in-Chief of about five

Telugu dailies. My satisfaction knew no bounds with the launching of new dailies and making them successful with new features and formats, an innovative style of catchy, single line banner headlines embellished with attractive pictures as a feast to the readers’ eyes for the first time in vernacular press.

Elaborating new trends which he initiated, he brought celebrated sports news on the front page with huge pictures. Commenting on the popularity of the Television medium, ABK is of the strong belief that print media is still in a better position to present in-depth news and analysis to its readers. Electronic media is a passing phenomenon whereas readers feel more at home with print medium, because of its credibility and shelf life. He says a journalist has to keep in mind the reader’s interests all the time.

ABK is indeed a man with the A prolific writer, ABK penned thousands of editorials that were compiled into ten volumes. He was respected and regarded as a scholar-journalist throughout the country. Many institutions of repute showered awards and honorary doctorate upon him. Dr Prasad has been associated with several educational and literary bodies as a member. Recognising his outstanding contributions for the promotion of Telugu language, the AP government appointed him as the Chairman of the Official Language Commission. He was largely instrumental in the Central government conferring classical language status on Telugu.

(Writer is a senior journalist with two decades of experience. He started his career as trainee reporter in Eenadu and later worked as a Sub Editor in Indian Express Hyderabad in 1977. As a reporter in Deccan Chronicle which he joined in 1979, he specialised in investigative journalism. He has doctorate degree from Osmania University)