Santha Rao

🪔 About

Shanta Rao (c. 1925 – December 28, 2007) was a pioneering Indian classical dancer born in Bombay (now Mumbai) to Saraswat Brahmins. She passed away at the age of 81 in her home in Malleswaram, Bangalore. Rao was instrumental in the renaissance of classical dance in India, known for her powerful and dynamic stage presence. Her extensive training began in 1939 at Kerala Kalamandalam, where she became the first female student to learn Kathakali under the tutelage of P. Ramunni Menon, making her debut in Thrissur in 1940. She also studied Mohiniyattam from Krishnan Panikkar at Kalamandalam, becoming the sole recipient of his heritage. Rao further honed her skills in Bharatanatyam under the legendary Meenakshisundaram Pillai of the Pandanallur style, debuting in Madras in 1942. Her repertoire expanded to include Kuchipudi, which she learned from Vempati Chinna Satyam and Venkatachalapathi Sastri. In the 1940s, she also ventured to Sri Lanka to learn Kandyan dances from Gunaya. Shanta Rao is credited with formulating her own classical dance form, Bhama Nrityam (also known as Bhama Natyam), inspired by Bhama Sutram rituals, which she presented in Bombay in 1965 after a period of withdrawal from public life. A very private individual, she believed there was no one suitable to whom she could pass on her legacy, thus not formally teaching or founding an academy. Her performances were meticulously documented by photographer Sunil Janah in the biographical book "Dances of The Golden Hall." Her last known performance was at the Sangeet Natak Akademi's Swarna Jayanti Mahotsava in Delhi in 1997. Awards & Honours: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1970), Padma Shri (1971), Kalidas Samman for Classical Dance, Shantala Award.