New Delhi: Indian classical dancer Mungara Yamini Krishnamurthi has passed away. As per news agency ANI, the Padma Shree awardee was admitted to the Apollo Hospital with a long-standing history of multiple medical issues. She was 84 years old.
As per news agency ANI, Dr Yamini Krishnamurthi was being treated by a multi-disciplinary team, despite whose efforts, she passed away on Sunday afternoon.
Born on December 20, 1940, Yamini Krishnamurthy was a proficient Bharatnatyam and Kuchipudi dancer.
About Dr Yamini Krishnamurthi
Born in Chittoor district, Andhra Paradesh, Krishnamurthy debuted in 1957 after being trained at Rukmini Devi Arundale’s Kalakshetra, a leading school for the dance form and under the mentorship of renowned dancers such as Kanchipuram Ellappa Pillai and Thanjavur Kittappa Pillai.
Yamini Krishnamurthi also trained in Kuchipudi under gurus liks Vedantam Lakshmi Narayana Shastri, Chinta Krishnamurthi and Pasumarthy Venugopal Krishna Sharma. In fact, her contribution is immense in renewing interest in the classical arts, and especially Kuchipudi which was then beginning to emerge as a popular dance form from Andhra Pradesh.
In addition to Kuchipudi, she learnt Odissi from Pankaj Charan Das and Kelucharan Mohapatra.
Dr Yamini Krishnamurthi also learnt Karatak vocal music and vina ( a type of string instrument) and despite her varied interests, she majorly focused on Bharatnatyam and Kuchipudi.
After receiving widespread fame and recognition for popularising both art forms in India and abroad, she opened her own dance school, Yamini School of Dance, in Delhi in 1990.
Krishnamurthi receieved the Padma Shri( 1968), the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award(1977), and the Padma Bhushan (2001) among several other accolades and awards.