Josyula Seetarama Sastry

🪔 About

Josyula Seetharamaiah, a distinguished figure in Indian classical dance, was born in 1923 in Kuchipudi village, Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, India, into a family of traditional actor-dancers. He began his dance journey with basic training in dance-drama from Tadepalli Peraiah Sastri. He further honed his skills in abhinaya under the tutelage of Vedantam Lakshminarayana Sastri. Seetharamaiah also delved into music, learning from Maruthi Seetharamaiah, and expanded his dance repertoire by studying Bharatanatyam under T. Bala Subrahmanyam Pillai. His performing career commenced at the early age of 14, where he took on various roles in Kuchipudi Yakshaganas. In 1959, he joined the Ghantasala Government Music and Dance College in Vijayawada as a teacher, dedicating sixteen years to imparting his knowledge. Following his tenure there, he established two significant Kuchipudi institutions in Vijayawada: Nrityakalaniketan and Nrityakalanjali, through which he continued to train numerous disciples. His lifelong dedication to Kuchipudi dance was recognized with the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1993. He was also honored with the Fellowship of the Andhra Pradesh Nrutya Academy in 1983 and bestowed the title of Asthana Vidwan by the Kanakadurga Temple Trust, Vijayawada. Awards & Honours: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1993), Fellowship of the Andhra Pradesh Nrutya Academy (1983), Asthana Vidwan.