Kandula Mallikharjuna Rao, better known as Mallik (1921–1996) was an Indian popular music composer and singer.
Sheik Chinna Moulana, popularly known as Sheik, was a legendary nadhaswaram player in the Carnatic tradition. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1998. He achieved high position through his outstanding control over the instrument, rendering the Krities in the Gayaki style and for his extraordinary style of Raga Alapana.
Indian Nutcracker, also called Swapna Vijayam, is an adaptation of the 1892 ballet The Nutcracker into the South Indian classical dance form of Kuchipudi, with Telugu lyrics. It was first performed on 15 December 2007 at the Robert Ferst Center for the Arts at Georgia Tech, to raise funds for the Emory University Telugu Initiative.
Sobha Naidu was among the foremost Kuchipudi dancers of India and a disciple of the renowned master Vempati Chinna Satyam. She mastered the technique of Kuchipudi and began dancing lead roles in dance-dramas at a young age. She performed with her guru's troupe extensively, performing the roles of Satyabhama and Padmavati. Principal of Kuchipudi Art Academy, Hyderabad, Sobha Naidu imparted training to younger students over the past few years. In 2010, the school celebrated the completion of 30 years. She also choreographed several dance-dramas. She received the title of Nritya Choodamani from Krishna Gana Sabha, Madras. She received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1991 and the Padma Shri award by the Government of India in 2001.
Dr.Pappu Venugopala Rao is a well-known Indian educationist and renowned musicologist. He specializes in Telugu and Sanskrit literature. He is also a writer and has written on varied subjects such as Music, Culture and spiritual subjects.
Vempati Chinna Satyam was an Indian dancer and a guru of the Kuchipudi dance form.
Nataraja Ramakrishna was an Indian dance guru. He was the chairman of Andhra Pradesh Sangeeta Nataka Academy. He was also a scholar and musicologist who promoted classical dance in Andhra Pradesh and worldwide.
K. Uma Rama Rao was an Indian Kuchipudi dancer, choreographer, research scholar, author and dance teacher. She was also the Founder & Director of Lasya Priya Dance Academy, established in 1985 in Hyderabad, India.
Balantrapu Rajanikanta Rao was an Indian writer, composer and poet in the Telugu language. He was the son of Balantrapu Venkatarao, one of modern Telugu poet-duo "Kavi Rajahamsa" Venkata Parvateswara Kavulu. He won several national and state level awards for his work. He died in April 2018 at the age of 98.
Raja and Radha Reddy are an Indian Kuchipudi dancing couple, gurus and choreographers. They are renowned as exponents of the South Indian dance form of Kuchipudi. They founded and run the Natya Tarangini Institute of Kuchipudi Dance in New Delhi. The duo are credited with having given Kuchipudi a new dimension without compromising on its traditional virtues. For their services to the field of arts, the Government of India has conferred on them the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awards.
Shantala Shivalingappa is an Indian Kuchipudi dancer. Shivalingappa, a "child of the east and west", was born in Madras, India, and raised in Paris. She attended the international Jeannine Manuel School in Paris when she was young. Her gurus are Vempati Chinna Satyam and her mother, Savitry Nair, under whom she trained in Bharatha Natyam. She has worked with prestigious artists such as Maurice Béjart, Peter Brook, Bartabas, Ushio Amagatsu and Pina Bausch. Her performances have been praised throughout the world, and she tours extensively, hoping to increase international awareness of the Kuchipudi form. She is known for playing Solveig in Irina Brook's Peer Gynt.
Kalamandalam Kshemavathy is a Mohiniyattam dancer from Thrissur, Kerala. She is an alumna of the Kerala Kalamandalam. She joined the institute when she was ten. After completion of the course, she undertook advanced training in Bharata Natyam under Muthuswamy Pillai and Chitra Visweswaran, and in Kuchipudi under Vempati Chinna Satyam, but chose to remain within the Mohiniyattam tradition.
Achuta Manasa is an Indian Kuchipudi dancer.
Shanta Rao was a notable dancer from India. She studied and performed Kathakali, Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi.
Vedantam Satyanarayana Sarma (1935–2012), popularly known as Satyam, was an Indian classical dancer and choreographer, considered by many as one of the leading exponents of the classical dance form of Kuchipudi. He was known for his portrayal of female characters such as Usha, Satyabhama, Deva Devi, Mohini, Sasirekha and Gollabhama (Gollakalapam). He was a recipient of several honors including Kalidas Samman, Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 1970, for his contributions to Dance.
Indira P. P. Bora is a Satriya dancer from Assam, India. Trained in Bharatnatyam for 13 years under Guru Rukmini Devi Arundale and in Kuchipudi under the guidance of Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam. Bora has promoted and performed Satriya in New Zealand, the United States, and Vietnam.
Byrraju Sandhya Raju is an Indian Kuchipudi dancer and actress. She is recipient of a National Film Award.
Karothi Venkata Satyanarayana, better known as K. V. Satyanarayana is a Kuchipudi dancer, choreographer, dance director and composer in India. He has established Sri Satya Kuchipudi and Janapada Nritya Akademy and trained many artists. He won the Nandi Award for Best Choreographer for Sruthilayalu (1987)
Maddali Usha Gayatri is an Indian Kuchipudi exponent, danseuse, guru and choreographer from the state of Andhra Pradesh. A recipient of Hamsa Award, she received critical acclaim for her choreography and performances. She performs ballets in mythological, historical and social themes. One of her works, Nrityam Darsayami, included a troupe of 12 of her disciples performing for 12 hours uninterruptedly.
