| Bio Sketch of Hemamalinl
Manju
Hemamalini Maniu popularly known as Hema, was born .in Guntur,
Andhra Pradesh in 1975, Her initial Kuchipudi lessons were
from a local Guru, Chinta Adinarayana Sharma. In 1988, she
moved to the world renowned Kuchipudi Maestro, Padma Bhushan,
Dr. Vempati Chinna Satyam’s Kuchipudi Art Academy in
Cbennai.
Hama learnt the intricacies and nuances of the fine art under
the watchful eyes of the great Guru for 8 years. She perfected
the art over that period and her uncompromising style like
her Guru’s led her to becoming a dance teacher at the
Kuchipudi Art Academy for 5 years.
During her learning and teaching years in Vempati’s
Academy, Hema performed at every place her Guru’s students
performed including USA, Canada and Germany (Festival of India
through ICCR). She has also performed in a documentary, “Temple
and the Swan”, on comparison of Indian and Western classical
dance forms telecast on BBC.
Hema’s major performances include: Khajuraho Dance
Festival at Khajuraho. Sangeet Natak Academy Festivals, Kuchipudi
Mahotsav in Mumbai. Konark Dance Festival in Konark, Soorya
Dance Festival in Kerala, Vendi Festival in Andhra Pradesh,
Mamallapuram Dance Festival in Tamil Nadu, Chicago Tyagaraja
Utsavam in Chicago, etc. She has also traveled in all the
major cities of Indonesia.
Hema was awarded the title “Natya Visharadha”
by the Kuchlpudi Art Academy, Chennai and the title “Nritya
Tarangini” in USA.
Currently, Hema runs her own dance school “Upasana
Arts Academy” at Hyderabad apart from performing and
composing her new dance productions. In the last four years,
since the inauguration of Upasana, Hema has trained a large
number of students, fulfilling her Guru’s objective
of keeping the great fine-art alive and promoting and spreading
it.
Hema has composed Kucipudi dance ballets, “Sri Krishna
Satrajit“(telecast by Doordharshan) and “Aamukta
Malyada”, a story of Goda Devi. She has also choreographed
many solo items and presented them at various occasions in
Andhra Pradesh and USA.
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Bio Sketch of Shobha
Shobha was born and brought up in Chennai,
the cultural capital of India. Hailing from a middle class
family of Government servants, she was initiated into dancing
at the age of l0 by her parents. She underwent training in
Bharatha Natyam for nearly 10 years before joining, in 1990,
the Kuchipudi Art Academy, the ace institution for Kuchipudi
style of dance. Since then, Shobha has undergone intensive
training in Kuchipudi art under the tutelage of her Guru,
Padma Bhushan Vempati Chinna Satyam. She has participated
in several programs staged by the Academy and has toured all
over India and the Globe as a member of her mentor Dr. Vempati’s
troupe.
She has taken part in many dance festivals like the Sangeet
Natak Academy- New Delhi, Mamallapuram Dance Festival-Tamil
Nadu, Deccan Herald Festival of Dance –Karnataka, Surya
Dance Festival - Kerala, Konarac Dance Festival - Orissa,
Chembur Fine Arts Festival – Maharashtra, Chidambaram
Natyanjali Festival etc, besides other State and Central Government
programs.
Shobha toured the Netherlands and Belgium with her Guru’s
troupe and participated in the World Music Theatre Festival
in 1996. She went to the Reunion Islands in 2002. She completed
a world tour performing in 30 cities in the United States,
in New Zealand, Australia and Singapore with her mentor from
Aug-Dec of 2004.
Shobha’s dedication and urge to acquire proficiency
in dancing shaped her into an artiste of considerable promise.
A Commerce graduate, she is a multifaceted personality. She
holds a diploma in Travel and Tourism management and also
in Cosmetology. She was awarded the prestigious “Natya
Visharada” title by the Kuchipudi Art Academy in 1997.
She was also the recipient of a Scholarship for Young Artists
in the field of Kuchipudi awarded by the Department of Culture,
Govt. of India during I 998~2000.
Shobha currently resides in New York and directs her Kuchipudi
School “Sathyanjali” there.
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