Joe Biden's speechwriter makes this Telangana village proud

Karimnagar: When the entire world is waiting to hear new US President Joe Biden's inaugural address, people in a remote village in Telangana cherished the moment for his speechwriter has roots here.

Villagers of Pothireddypeta in Karimnagar district, about 200 km from Hyderabad, feel proud that Cholleti Vinay Reddy has been appointed as the Director of speechwriting of the new US President.

People in the village recall their association with Vinay Reddy's father Narayana Reddy, who migrated to the US in 1970. Narayana Reddy, who did his schooling in the village, pursued MBBS in Hyderabad and later migrated to the US. Vinay Reddy was born and brought up in the US, but his family maintained its links with the village and the family still owns three acres and a house in Pothireddypeta.

Narayana Reddy and his wife Vijaya Reddy still visit the village and meet relatives and friends. They had last visited the village in February 2020. Vinay Reddy's grandfather Thirupathi Reddy had served as village sarpanch (head) for several years. Thatikonda Pullachari, who is now serving as village sarpanch, said he worked with Thirupathi Reddy in 1980s.

"It's a matter of pride not just for our family but the entire village that Vinay Reddy rose to such an important position in the US," said Cholleti Sai Krishna Reddy, a relative of Vinay Reddy, who looks after their family lands in the village. "Vinay Reddy serves as a speechwriter on the Biden-Harris Transition and served as Senior Advisor and Speechwriter for the Biden-Harris Campaign," says Biden-Harris Transition website.

He previously served as chief speechwriter to Vice-President Biden in the second term of Obama-Biden White House, after which, he worked as Vice-President of Strategic Communications at national Basketball Association.

According to the website, during the Obama-Biden Administration, Vinay Reddy also served as a senior speechwriter at the US Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Health and Human Services, deputy speechwriter for the Obama-Biden re-election campaign, and speechwriter for his home state Senator, Sherrod Brown of Ohio.

Reddy grew up in Dayton, Ohio. He is middle of the three sons in an immigrant family and a product of the Ohio public schools from kindergarten to Miami University to Ohio State University College of Law. He currently lives in New York with his wife and their two daughters, it reads.