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Three time National awardee, Yamini Reddy is one of the most sought after Kuchipudi artistes in the Indian Classical Dance sphere. Born to the legendary performers and Gurus Padma Bhushans Drs. Raja and Radha Reddy and Kaushalya Reddy, she is a flag bearer of the legacy of the indomitable Kuchipudi masters. Training from a very young age, Yamini is a testament to the fruits of dedication, learning, and expert tutelage.
She began her career as a young star, stepping into the spotlight at the age of 3. Since then, she has been traversing stages across the globe. She is the Founder and Director of Natya Tarangini Hyderabad, a school established in 2007 dedicated to teaching and training young individuals in the art of Kuchipudi.
Yamini has been awarded the ‘Yuva Ratna Award’, Youth Vocational Excellence award by the District Rotaract Organization, the Young Achievers award by FLO Delhi and Hyderabad, the ‘Devadasi National Award’ and Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar by Sangeet Natak Akademi (2007). She is also the recipient of the SBJ Legends of Tomorrow title, Jashn-e-Youngistan by News24, and the ‘Pride of Telangana’ award (2019). The Mayor of Dublin presented her with the golden key to the city after watching her captivating Kuchipudi dance performance in Dublin.
Yamini owes an immense amount of her success to her gurus and believes it’s her responsibility to pass on the vast knowledge that she has gained. Perseverance and innovation form the prescient of Yamini’s journey. She hopes to perform, teach, and learn, as she believes that a finish line ceases to exist , in an artist’s journey with art.
Yamini has toured the United Kingdom, Europe, the United States, UAE, South East Asia extensively. She was the first dancer ever to perform at the prestigious Wigmore Hall, London in 2011. She also had the honour of performing as part of a tour of Russia and East Europe, where she had the opportunity to perform for the SCO Summit and the First Lady of Slovenia.
She firmly believes that the art form can only grow through innovations and explorations, but without the foundations of the traditional structures, these innovations do not contribute anything to the art. She has constantly pursued widening the horizons of Kuchupudi through her various thematic performances and productions and yet never compromised on the structures of the yore.
గుర్తింపు
– Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar
Kuchipudi derives its name from the village of Kuchelapuram now known as Kuchipudi Village in Andhra Pradesh, India, where it grew largely as a product of bhakti movement beginning in the seventh century A.D. As a classical form of dance, drama and music, Kuchipudi enjoys a unique place among the Indian classical dance idioms. It is a combination of Nattuvamela (Temple dances) and Natyamela (theatre forms) which gives it a unique flavour. Kuchipudi combines speech, mime and pure dance.
The Kuchipudi dancer is a multiple person on stage and this multiplicity is achieved by the swift change of mime which depends more on the combination of naturalism of the dramatic content and symbolism of the poetic intensity of feeling of an episode. The consequence of this is the emphasis laid on the dynamics of movement and expressionism of feeling.
Like any other dance form in India, Kuchipudi, draws its sustenance from the principles enunciated in Bharata’s Natya Sastra, the Sanskrit textbook for Indian dance and drama. The earlier themes of Kuchipudi were based on the legends of Shiva, performed both by men and women.
The resurgent spirit of the later period brought about a revival of the Kuchipudi in Andhra Pradesh, which gave rise to the inclusion of the softer romantic elements of Vaishnavism. The Kuchipudi artists began enacting stories from Bhagvata Puranas. As decades rolled by, however, enthusiasm for dance waned and the art showed signs of disintegration. It then fell on a great mystic teacher, Siddhendra Yogi (1350-1450 AD) to formulate a syllabus and discipline for Kuchipudi dance and to persuade male members of the Brahmin community to take a pledge to learn, practice and dance this form.
Since then Kuchipudi has evolved into one of the most popular styles of dancing in India performed by both men and women.
Kuchipudi is ebullient, scintillating, and yet has the capacity to be intensely lyrical. The dance involves extensive stage movements and exacting footwork, wherein the underlying drama is mimed by expressive gestures of hand (mudras), eye and face movements. Its musical repertoire is based in Carnatic Music. While most traditional performances seek to narrate a tale, predominantly from the Hindu mythology , the length and breadth of Kuchipudi gives it natural scope to explore modern themes and ideas.
“The Reddy’s are the ultimate showmen. Their presentation can rarely be matched by other dancers.”
– The Hindu
About two decades back Legendary Kuchipudi Dancing couple Raja and Radha Reddy created history by becoming the first couple to receive the Padmashree and the Padmabhushan awards individually and simultaneously for bringing ‘Kuchipudi Dance’- the pride of Andhra Pradesh/Telangana onto the cultural map of the world. But their journey is not alone, in their efforts to propagate this art form they have been joined by Kaushalya Reddy who is the driving force behind Natya Tarangini Institute, Delhi and their two daughters Yamini and Bhavana Reddy, who are now young stars on the Kuchipudi firmament.
Today they stand out as the only family in India which is completely dedicated to dance. Raja and Radha Reddy are famous for their togetherness and perfect unison. Joined by Kaushalya, Yamini and Bhavana, who are carrying on the ‘parampara’ or tradition of the Kuchipudi family, they bring to life a bigger picture of Kuchipudi encompassing its finest nuances at the same time infusing it with fresh energy. The Reddy family is rarely matched in its presentation. Together they have traveled the world over and are continually striving to maintain Kuchipudi’s position on the cultural map of the world.
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Legendary Kuchipudi Dancing couple, Raja and Radha Reddy, is responsible for bringing Kuchipudi dance, the pride of Andhra Pradesh, onto the cultural map of the world.
Legendary Kuchipudi Dancing couple, Raja and Radha Reddy, is responsible for bringing Kuchipudi dance, the pride of Andhra Pradesh, onto the cultural map of the world.
For their contribution to the art form they have been decorated with many awards nationally and internationally. They have had the honor of performing for presidents and prime ministers of many countries such as President Ford, Bill Clinton, Fidel Castro etc. They have conducted charity shows for Red Cross Society, Blind Relief Association, and the home for the aged people in Bombay and CRY. They had the honor of being invited as the first Indian dancers to participate in the International Dance festival of Avignon in France and Salzburg in Austria.
The couple’s contribution to the festival of India in the USA and the UK was considered outstanding. They were the star attraction of the All Star Ballet Gala festival in Japan. The Reddys inaugurated the India Festival in Bangladesh. Raja and Radha Reddy have created history by becoming the first couple to receive Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan award individually and simultaneously for the same cause by the President of India, the Sangeet Natak Academy award, International Meridian award etc.