Vemulawada

Vemulawada was the capital of a branch of the Chalukya dynasty in northern Telangana. Its Rajarajesvara temple and sacred tank have long attracted worshippers, while inscriptions preserve the names of rulers, merchants and temples of the old town. A pillar inscription of Arikesari II calls the capital Lembulavataka and records a grant for feeding pilgrims. It names several temples and local merchants as witnesses, revealing a busy religious and civic centre.

The Chalukya court patronised the Kannada poet Pampa, who dedicated his Vikramarjuna Vijaya to Arikesari II in the tenth century. The work retold the Mahabharata while celebrating the poet’s patron. Vemulawada remained a seat of government after the fall of this ruling family; inscriptions under the later Chalukyas of Kalyani record further gifts to its temples. The shrines and inscriptions together preserve the memory of a regional capital that joined political authority, devotion and literary patronage.