Josyula Sitaramayya

🪔 About

Josyula Seetharamaiah, a prominent figure in Indian classical dance, was born in 1923 in Kuchipudi village, Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh. Hailing from a family of traditional actor-dancers, he began performing Kuchipudi Yakshaganas at the early age of 14. His foundational training in Kuchipudi dance-drama was under Tadepalli Peraiah Sastri. He further honed his skills in abhinaya (expressive acting) with 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. In 1959, Seetharamaiah joined the Ghantasala Government Music and Dance College in Vijayawada, where he dedicated sixteen years to teaching. Following his tenure there, he established his own institutions in Vijayawada, namely Nrityakalaniketan and Nrityakalanjali, through which he continued to impart training in Kuchipudi. Josyula Seetharamaiah has rendered a lifetime's service to Kuchipudi dance, training numerous disciples, many of whom have become established dancers and teachers themselves. Awards & Honours: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1993), Fellowship of the Andhra Pradesh Nrutya Academy (1983), Asthana Vidwan.