History of Kuchipudi

In the 13th century there was a young man named Siddhappa whose marriage was arranged to a beautiful girl. Unfortunately while crossing the river to attend his wedding his boat capsized and he was on the verge of being drowned. He pleaded with God to save him and promised to dedicate his life to the service of God. Miraculously he was saved, and on that day, he was "re-born" as Siddhendra Yogi. He wrote a drama in praise of Krishna and gathered dancers to perform the same. These dancers were all male as he felt the inclusion of females might lead to the decadence of the art. This style which had its origins in the Bhagavata Mela Natakam or dance drama tradition has come to be known as the Kuchipudi dance style today. The dance style gets its name from the village called Kuchipudi, where this dance drama tradition was nurtured in all its sanctity for many decades. In the photograph, are Guru Raja and Radha and Kausalya Reddy, famous exponents of this form.

How this dance drama tradition came to be nurtured in the Kuchipudi village is a story of the religious tolerance that existed in India even in the 13th century. It so happened that a group of dancers performed in the court of a nawab in Andhra Pradesh.

Their rendition of the dance drama was so impressive that he gifted the village of Kuchipudi to the artists with the promise that they would continue the tradition of performing . From that day onwards all the male scions of the Kuchipudi village have pursued this art. Different themes taken from Indian mythology form the content of these dance dramas. There are several interesting incidents in the history of Kuchipudi. Once a group of Kuchipudi artistes depicted the atrocities inflicted by a cruel ruler in the neighbouring king's court. So effective was their rendition that the king put an immediate end to the tyrannical ruler. The Kuchipudi dance drama tradition went on for several years and is regarded, even today, as the closest to the Sanskrit theatrical tradition followed in Bharata's Natya Shastra. This dance-drama tradition was so beautiful that close to the turn of this century it developed into a solo dance style and was performed by female artistes. The present day Kuchipudi dance style has its source in the 'nattuva melamu' and 'natyamelamu'.

1 'Natyamelamu' consists of a group of actors (males) performing Kuchipudi dance drama.

2 'Nattuvamelam' is a tradition of dance performed by woman artistes. This tradition had two sections , those who performed at the royal courts and those who performed in the temples.

Kuchipudi has now gained immense popularity because of its lilting music and graceful and flowing movements and vibrant stage presentation. The well known artists who pioneered its popularity are Yamini Krishnamurthy, Swapnasundari and the couple, Radha and Raja Reddy. The great gurus in this style are Guru C.R. Acharyulu, Guru Vempeti Chinna Satyam and Guru Korada Narasimha Rao. Beautiful costumes, enchanting music and vivacious dance technique make this style a delight to watch. The photos on this site belong to the famous exponents Guru Raja and Smt. Radha Reddy.