- published: 28 Sep 2013
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Ashoka (Devanāgarī: अशोक, IAST: Aśoka, IPA: [aˈɕoːkə], ca. 304–232 BC), also known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests. His empire stretched from present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan in the west, to the present-day Bangladesh and the Indian state of Assam in the east, and as far south as northern Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. He conquered the kingdom named Kalinga, which none of his ancestors had conquered starting from Chandragupta Maurya. His reign was headquartered in Magadha (present-day Bihar). He embraced Buddhism after witnessing the mass deaths of the Kalinga War, which he himself had waged out of a desire for conquest. He was later dedicated to the propagation of Buddhism across Asia and established monuments marking several significant sites in the life of Gautama Buddha. Ashoka was a devotee of ahimsa (nonviolence), love, truth, tolerance and vegetarianism. Ashoka is remembered in history as a philanthropic administrator. In the history of India, Ashoka is referred to as Samraat Chakravartin Ashoka – the "Emperor of Emperors Ashoka".
Mohan Babu (born Manchu Bakthavatsalam Naidu) is an actor and producer in Telugu Cinema. He is also an educationist and a former Member of Parliament – Rajya Sabha from Andhra Pradesh. He received the Padma Shri in 2007.
Mohan was born on 19 March 1952 at Modhugulapalem village near the banks of the river Swarnamukhi, and sandwiched between two famous pilgrim centers, Tirupati (abode of Lord Venkateshwara) and Srikalahasti (abode of Lord Vayulingeswara) in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. He has three younger brothers – Ranganath Chowdary, Ramachandra Chowdary and Krishna – and a sister Vijaya. He had his schooling at Yerpedu village and Tirupati. He took his degree in Physical Education in Chennai. He worked as a physical education instructor for a brief while, before making his debut as an actor in the Telugu film industry. Mohan Babu also worked in the film direction department for about half a decade in the early 1970s. He was a class mate of Rajinikanth while they studied at the Madras Film Institute.