Andhra village hogs limelight, thanks to Usha Chilukuri

Visakhapatnam: Usha Chilukuri Vance is the talk of the town in the US ahead of the presidential elections, but she hails from a nondescript Andhra Pradesh village and a distant relative here wants her to remember her Godavari roots and contribute to India in whatever possible way.

Wife of JD Vance, Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate for the forthcoming 2024 US presidential elections, her origins are from a village in Andhra Pradesh’s West Godavari district, her relative said.

C Shantamma, a 96-year-old Vizag-based physics professor, who never met or spoke to Usha is hogging the limelight by virtue of being a distant relative. “I am related to Usha through my husband (C Subramanya Sastry). She is the granddaughter of my brother-in-law who worked as an IIT professor,” Shantamma told a vernacular news channel on Wednesday.

Subramanya Sastry’s oldest brother, C Rama Sastry, is Usha’s grandfather. Her parents, C Radhakrishna and Lakshmi, immigrated to the US around 1980. According to the nonagenarian, who still teaches physics as an emeritus professor at a private varsity in Vizianagaram, Usha’s family belonged to Vadduru village near Tanuku town in lush green West Godavari district.

She was delighted over Usha emerging as the spouse of a US vice presidential candidate from the Republican party, and conveyed her heartiest congratulations to the accomplished lawyer. “I consider her a very important person. She would have had many powers. Also, she would have endured many difficulties,” said Usha’s grand aunt, noting JD Vance’s contribution and efforts in enabling her success. Calling Vance a helpful husband, she said the former would have helped Usha a lot in her career with a conducive atmosphere.