Taking Kuchipudi global

This young and vivacious Hyderabadi dancer and student of Padma Shri Dr Sobha Naidu, on her recognition, as IDC member feels very elated. “I sent my resume to IDC and felt that in the worst case, I would be rejected, but it was a pleasant surprise when I got a letter of ‘Congratulations’.

This will help me to perform in Athens, Greece, in the coming days,” says Yamini. Yamini, who passed out from Sri Aurobindo School, with Business Studies, Economics, and Commerce, made a career choice by not following the footsteps of her mother Jyotsna Rao, who is a doctor at a corporate hospital.

“In the olden days, people had only dream of making a career as a doctor or an engineer, the same holds true even today, but, my mom never told me even once that I should become a doctor. Even my brother is training to become a tennis professional,” she says.

The dancer shares that her mother named her after the legend Yamini Krishnamurthy, Bharatanatyam dancer. Her advice is not to compare yourself with other dancers, but one must build their own style.

Yamini states that her mom returned from the US in 2003, as she wanted her children to grow up in Indian culture. My mom was very keen that my brother and I have a strong grounding in Indian values,” says Yamini.

The 19-year-old says that she enrolled under Padma Shri Guru Dr Sobha Naidu’s guidance in 2005 and has learned the intricacies of dance under the legend. “I was taking classes at the Academy since I was in Class IX. That has given me a lot of confidence, even though I was nicknamed half-ticket as I looked small, but the moment I got on to the stage, it was different,” says the Kuchipudi dancer.

“I take classes through Skype for students in Argentina, Czech Republic, and teach one on one in the US. The students there are very keen to learn. Me being a perfectionist doesn’t give them any concessions. I ensure that they understand the meaning of what they are doing, including the lyrics.

There one’s age doesn’t matter,” says the dancer. For acquiring complete knowledge about dance, Yamini is dance is pursuing Carnatic music under Vijayalakshmi.

Bestowed with Pandit Jasraj scholarship, Yamini has decided to juggle between US and Hyderabad. “I want to perform in India during the dance season and teach dance in the US and earn a living through it,” says Yamini .