Snippets of Information
Dancers / Institutions
Kuchipudi - Early contributors
Source: kuchipudi.com (Visit the site for complete profiles)
Chinta Venkataramayya
(1860 - 1949)
Chinta
Venkataramayya was a disciple of Venkataratnam,
his elder brother, and Yeleswarapu Narayanappa.
Founder of Vekatarama Nataya
Mandali.
Disciples: Vedantam Raghavayya
Hari chalapati, vedantam Chalapati, vedantam Ramakrishnayya, Chinta Rama
Murthy, Chinta Krishna Murthy and Pasumarti Venugopala Krishna Sarma.
Vempati Venkatanarayana
(1871 - 1935)
Vempati Venkatanarayana
was trained by his father Sri Kodandaraamayya. He was called ABHINAVA
SATHYABHAAM.
Madhavayya Hari
Madhavayya started his dance
training under his father Sriramulu and also was well versed in music.
He was fascinated by the
Bhagavatamela dance dramas of Melathur Kasinathayya and borrowed the texts
with a view to adopt it to Kuchipudi style.
Disciples: Chinta Venataratnam,
Ramanatham and Hari Chalapat
Hari Venkatachalapati
Hari Venkatachalapati's
times are not clearly known but according to some sources he was supposed
to have lived between early and late 19th century.
Vedantam Lakshminarayana
Sastry (1886 -1956)
Lakshminarayana Sastry learnt
dance from Sri Vempati Venkatanarayana and with great ease and class performed
Bhamakalapam and Gollakalapam. A master in both theoretical and Practical
aspects of dance, music and talas. Lakshminarayana Sastry is credited for
introducing solo system of dance in the otherwise traditional dance drama
form of Kuchipudi, dances on a brass plate while balancing
a full pitcher on the head.
In the early thirties when
the art form was facing a crisis, he along with his son Jagannadha Sarma,
one of the most popular female impersonators of the time and Ayyanki Thandava
Krishna extensively toured India performing Kuchipudi. Lakshminarayana
Sastry was also pioneer in introducing the dance form to women, which till
then was restricted only to men.
Titles: Natyakalanidhi, Shadbharathkalanidhi, Abhinaya Brahma
Disciples: Vedantham Jagannadha
Sarma, Vempati Peda Satyam, Vempati Chinna Satyam and Ayyanki Thandava
Krishna, Vijaya Prasad, Yamini Krishnamurthy .
He also trained the temple
dancers, who include Duggirala Jagadamba of Mandapeta and Srirajitham.
Non-Kuchipudi artistes like T. Bala Saraswathi, Ramayya Pillai, Mylapore
Gouri Amma and Tara Chowdary came to him for training in Abinaya.
Bhagavathula Vissaiah
Many established dancers, such as Bharatanatyam legend Mylapore
Gowriamma, went to Vissaiah to enhance their knowledge of abhinaya
nuances.
Tadepalli Perayya
( 1886 - 1942 )
He was an expert in performing
BHAMA and GOLLAKALAAPAS. Perayya is known more as a guru than as a performer.
He trained DEVADAASIS of Meduru and Nangigadda, arranged performances by
them and played the roles of SUTHRADHAARA (principal narrator).
Dsciples: Vempati Chinna
Satyam and Josyula Sitaramayya.
Vedaantham Ramakrishnaiah
(1886 - 1971)
Ramakrishnaiah learnt dance
from Chintha Venkataramayya and his elder brothers Venkatachalapathi, Venkateswara
Sastry and Lakshminarayana; he was trained in music by Venkateswara Sastry
(his brother) and Challapalli Sitharamayya. He
worked with D.V.Subbarao in the Indian Dramatic Company at Machilipatnam.
He also headed the group VEDAANTHAM VAARI MELAM. He tried to bring in appropriate
costumes and stage dcor in his dance dramas.
Punnaya Hari
(1890 - 1970)
Punnaya Hari was trained
by his father Venkatachalapathi. He was also a skilled artisan in
making dance ornaments.
Mahankaali Chinna
Sathyanarayana (1904 - 1977)
Second son of Sri Sriraamulu,
Mahankaali Sathyanarayana received his early training in dance form from
his father and later from Chintha Venkataramayya and music from Challapalli
Sitharaamayya. He
worked under the banner of MAHANKAALI MELAMU for a long time with Vedaantham
Raaghavayya, Bhaagavathula Sathyanaaraayana, Darbha Venkateswarlu and Vedaantham
Ramayya as his colleagues. After Vedaantham Raaghavayya's entry in
to the film world, he rejoined VENKATARAMA NATYAMANDALI.
Chinta Radhakrishna
Murthy (1910 - 1988)
Radhakrishna Murthy was
initiated into dance by his father Narayana Murthy and later continued
with Chinta Venkataramayya and Vempati Venkatanarayana. In
the later period of his dance career he travelled far and wide of the country
giving performances with Chinta vari melam.
Disciples: Chinta Adinarayana
Sarma, Anuradha jonnalagadda and Jyothirmayi.
Chinta Krishna
Murthy (1912 - 1969)
Chinta Krishnamurthy, the
son of Chinta Venkataramayya, who founded the famous Venkatarama Natya
Mandali troupe was born in 1912 in Kuchipudi village, Krishna district. He trained a generation of Kuchipudi actor-dancers,
including the legendary Vedantam Satyam. But his lasting contribution was
the organization of the Venkatarama Natya Mandali on a sound footing. He played a crucial part, along with
Banda Kanakalingeswara Rao, in establishing the Shri Siddhendra Kalakshetram
in Kuchipudi, the premier institution imparting traditional training in
the form.
Disciple: Jayarama
Rao
Sources: kuchipudi.com ; indianetzone.com
Pasumarti Subrahmanya
Sastry (1915)
Subrahmanya Sastry had his
initial training in dance from his grandfather, Mahankali Chalapati.
Received advanced training in the female roles from Yeleswarapu
Satyanarayana,
Musti Chidambara deekshtulu, Chinta Krishna murthy and Srirama Murthy.
He worked as a teacher in Siddhendra
Kalakshetra at Kuchipudi for some time.
Disciple: Bokka Krishna Murthy
Vedantam Raaghavayya
(1919 - 1971)
Raaghavayya started his formal training in Dance (Yakshagana) and Music
(Yakshna Sampradaya Sangeetam) from his own father at a very tender age
of five and later he continued under the tutelage of Yakshagana Pitamaha
Sri Chinta Venkararamayya and Sri Vedantam Lakshminarayana Sastry. He
had also mastered the languages of Sanskrit & Telugu from one of his
cousin and scholar, Bhagavatula Sitaramaswami. He made his debut
performance at the age of seven.
Vedantam Paarvathisam
(1920 - 2005)
He was trained by Yeleswarapu
Sitharaamaanjaneyulu, Chinta Venktaramayya, Vedantam Ramakrishnaiah. He
gave performances in the Jaipur and Delhi Congress sessions and performed
all over India. One of the founder members of SIDDHENDRA KALAKSHETRA, along
with Banda Kanakalingeswara Rao at Kuchipudi in 1957. Since its inception,
he worked there and retired as its Principal.
He was a prolific writer
too; his PAARATHISU KIRTHANALU and dance dramas were regularly published
in NATYAKALA, a monthy journal dedicated to arts, dance and drama, in particular
published by Andhra Pradesh Sangeet Natak Akademi, Hyderabad.
The singular contribution
of Paarvathisam to the field of Kuchipudi lay in the preparation and compilation
of the basics of Kuchipudi dance mainly meant for the learners and also
the documentation of a few traditional dance dramas and PAGATI VESHAS.
Vedantam Parvatisam was
the first to record the patakasharas (solfa syllables) used for the basics
of Kuchipudi in his book "Nritya Tarangini" published in 1988.
Vedantam Parvatisam also
added certain variations to some steps. The innovations mainly occured
in the domain of executing the movement and its body kinetics and in the
addition of variations.
Disciples: Pasumarthy Rattaiah Sarma, Yeleswarapu Nageswara Sarma, Chintha Ramamu, Jayarama
Rao, Pasumarthi Kesava Prasad, Bhaagavathula Mohan Rao.
Sources: kuchipudi.com ; dspace.vidyanidhi.org
Vempati Peda
Sathyanarayana (1922 - 1982)
Popularly known as Peda
Satyam, he had his primary training in dance at the age of thirteen under
Chintha Venkataramayya and received advanced training from Vedantham Lakshminarayana
Sastry. He also learnt Bharathanatyam and Kathakali from Ramgopal of Bangalore
and was drawn towards the art of painting by Adavi Baapiraju.
The most popular dance director
in South Indian film field, his specialty in dance was blending of classical
with modern. He started his career as dance director with BHAKTHIMAALA
(1941), in which his disciple Bhanm acted. He directed dance for almost
three hundred films in Telugu, Tamil Canarese and Hindi, they include films
like NARTHANASALA, SUVARNA SUNDARI, PANDAVA VANAVASAM, SRI KRISHNA PANDAVEEYAM
and KALYANAM.
He wrote many research articles
on Kuchipudi that were published in several papers and journals like NATANA,
MURALI, SURYAPRABHA, MATHRBHUMI and DHANKA.
He established KUCHIPUDI
KALAKENDRA in 1948.
Disciples: Vedaantham Sathyanarayana
Sarma, Sumathy Kaushal and Yadavalli Rama
Vedaantham Jagannaadha
Sarma (1922 - 1982)
He was trained by his father
Lakshminaaraayana Sastry. Vedaantham Jagannaadha Sarma is known or his excellent
portrayal of female characters, like SATHYABHAAMA, USHA and GOLLABHAAMA.
He shifted to Madras and
entered the film world as dance director and was associated with nearly
fifty films in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Oriya languages. Notable
films - ILAVELPU, CHENCHULAKSHMI, RATNA PRABHA, BANGARUPAPA and
KALAIARASI, THAI ILLA PILLAI.
He established KUCHIPUDI
KALAKSHETRAM in 1965
Dsciples: Akella Shanti Sastri
(his daughter), Sumathy Koushal, Krishna Kumari, Bharathi,
Nilimma Devi, Usha Gayathri and R. Vijaya Lakshmi.
Dr. Nataraja
Ramakrishna (March 31, 1923
- June 7, 2011)
He revived Andhra Natyam,
one of the most ancient classical dance forms of India. He recreated the
"Perini Sivathandavam", the militant male dance tradition of the 10th century
AD. He has revived 'Navajanardanam', a great Prabandha dance tradition
that was performed in Kunthi Madhava Temple at Pithapuram in the East Godavari
District of Andhra Pradesh. Dr. Nataraja Ramakrishna choreographed and
staged "Sri Venkateswara Kalyanam", "Kumara Sambhavam" and "Megha Sandesam".
Mahakali Sriramulu
(1927)
Sriramulu is a well-known
male character actor; trained initially by his father, he was shaped later
by Vedantam Parvatisam and Chinta Krishna Murthy. Associated with Venkatarama
Natyamandali in the initial years of his performance, he was adept in conducting
the dance dramas as Sutradhara.
Pasumarti Krishna
Murthy (1927- 2004)
Krishna Murthy is the disciple
of Chintha Venkataramayya and Chintha Ramamurthy. Specially known for his
ABHINAYA he was popular for his female roles of SATHYABHAAMA, GOLLABH, USHA
and SASIREKHA; as an young artist, he was associated with CHINTHA VAARI
MELAM, which trained and shaped him in the exquisite portrayal of female
characters.
He entered the film field
and directed dance for nearly two hundred films in Telugu, Tamil, Canarese,
Malayalam and Hindi. His most popular films include MALLISWARI,MAHAAKAVI
KAALIDAASU, MAAYABAZAAR, MISSAMMA, VINAAYAKA CHAVITHI, SIRI SIRI MUVVA
and MEGHASANDESAM.
C.R.Acharyalu
( - 1998)
C.Rama Acharyalu was from
Nuzvid, Krishna district. He was a disciple of Vedantham Laxminarayana
Shastry. Before beginning his teaching career at Darpana, Ahmedabad, he
had established "Nataraja Nritya Samiti at Eluru in 1951.
Vedantam Prahlada
Sarma (1923 - 1991)
Vedantam Prahlada Sarma,
the elder brother and teacher of Vedantam Satyam (Satyanarayana Sarma)
was born in Kuchipudi village, Krishna district. He received his
initial training from his father Rattayya and Vedantam Lakshminarayana
Sastri, Vempati Venkatanarayan and other members of the family. He mastered
both male and female roles and had a sound knowledge of music. In 1964, he moved
to Eluru, as a principal of Kalakshetram and trained several dancers including
his brother Vedantam Satyam.
Disciples: Pasumarthy Rattaiah Sarma, Yamini
Krishnamurthy, Sunanda Devi , Raja and Radha Reddy, Vyjayanthi Kashi, Nilimma Devi, Jaya,
Bharati
Sources: kuchipudi.com ; indianetzone.com ; "Kuchipudi
- Indian Classical Art form" by Sunil Kothari / Avinash Pasricha
Dr.Vempati Chinna
Satyam (15 October 1929 - 29 July 2012)
Born in a traditional family
of dancers in the village of Kuchipudi, Andhra Pradesh, Vempati Chinna
Satyam received his initial training from Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Sastry,
a great master in the field and later from Tadepally Perrayya Sastry. At
the age of 18 he travelled to Chennai and underwent rigorous training under
his cousin, Vempati Pedda Satyam who was a well-established dance director
in the film world. Vempati
started the "Kuchipudi Art Academy" at Madras in the year 1963.
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