[1] Sri Duggirala Gopalakrishnayya, was a very captivating poet, speaker, songwriter, philosopher, singer and an extraordinary revolutionary with a philosophy of non-violence.
[2] His father, Kodandaramaswamy, was a school teacher but came from a family of landlords from Guntur and his mother Sitamma died soon after giving birth to him, her only child.
[1] In 1911 he chose go to the University of Edinburgh along with his childhood friend Sri Nadimpalli Narasimha Rao (Barrister of Guntur) where he lived for six years and earned a postgraduate degree in economics.
Moreover, after attending the Calcutta Congress session in 1920, he was attracted to principles of 'non-co-operation' and 'Satyagraha', and resolved to dedicate his life to the achievement of Swaraj (native rule).
In 1921 the Congress held its annual session at Bezwada (or Vijayawada) where the Rama Dandu played a prominent role in organising it.
Members of the Dandu wore saffron clothes and donned rudraksha beads and vermilion and they participated in the meeting in large numbers.
The satyagraha had its roots in the decision of the colonial government of the Madras Presidency to combine the villages of Chirala and Perala in Guntur district into a municipality.
In January 1921 the residents decided not to pay the taxes and the government in response clamped down by arresting, prosecuting and sentencing several of the protesters to imprisonment.
[7][10] Following the Bezwada Congress session, Mahatma Gandhi visited Chirala where Gopalakrishnayya sought his advice on the future course of action.