Venkata was a great ruler. He was able to restore the prestige and power of the Vijayanager Empire, in the eyes of the Indians as well as foreign powers. He recovered the territories which had been taken possession of by the powerful neighbours during the weak rule of his predecessors.

He put down the recalcitrant chieftains in his dominion with an iron hand. He was able to unify the country and restored it to its former glory. But for his statesmanship and military acumen, the Vijayanagar Empire would have disintegrated. He is ranked as the greatest sovereign of the Aravidu dynasty.

He deserves a very high place among all those who sat on the throne of Vijayanagar. It was nothing less than a miracle to resurrect it after the disastrous battle of Talikota and the credit for it goes to Venkata.

Like his great contemporary Akbar, he was tolerant towards all religions. He held “disputations on God, philosophy, and mathematics with the teachers or philosophers almost every day”. He would spend long hours with the teachers of various religions and tried to understand their fundamental principles.

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He was a great patron of learning and gave liberal grants for the maintenance of professors and students. Many philosophers such as Tatacharya, Appayyadikshita and eminent poets such as Chennamaraju, Matla Ananta and Tarigoppula Mallana flourished in his court.

He was equally interested in the promotion of other arts such as painting and sculpture. He was impressed with European artists and employed two Jesuits to paint some incidents from Christian scriptures. His copper statue in Tirupati temple shows his keen interest in sculpture.