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Design Resource
Traditional Toys of Kondapalli
The Craft of Wooden Toys
by
J. N. Somya
About Kondapalli
Kondapalli is an industrial town near Vijayawada city, Andhra Pradesh, India with nearly 38000 population covering an area of 1.5 sq kilometers. It is about 20 km by road from Vijayawada on National Highway 221 and on Hyderabad – Vijayawada railway line.
The word Kondapalli gets its name from the shepherd named ‘Kondadu’ who showed the site to King Kondaveedu Reddy and hence it was called Kondapalli. The town is known for two major things i.e. ancient ‘Kondapalli Fort’ and its locally-made toy craft Kondapalli bommalu (Kondapalli toys). ‘Kondapalli Fort’ of three storeys was built in this place during the region of King Anavema Reddy in 1360 A.D. It was however during the rule of the Qutab Shahis that Kondapalli gained paramount importance and fame as a hill fortress. The 37 Sultans re-christened it as Mustafanagar. Later, the British East India Company considered it a strategic location and a military school existed here till 1859 (as revealed by the historic records of Andhra Pradesh in general and Vijayawada in particular).
