Usha Srinivasan (born 16 July 1962), more commonly known as Usha, is an Indian film classical dancer specialising in kuchipudi. She was born in a Tamil family. Her father, P. Srinivasan, is a Veda pandit.

Early life Srinivasan is from Hyderabad, Telangana. She was trained under the kuchipudi dance masters Pasumarthi Sheshubabu, Bhagavatula Sethuram, Uma Ramarao, Chinta Aadinarayana Sharma and Vedantam Radhe Sharma. She was inspired in kuchipudi dance by the legendary Kuchipudi dancers Shobha Naidu and Raja and Radha Reddy. Her mother is also a classical dancer specialised in bharatanatyam.

She did an MA in kuchipudi dance through Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University in Hyderabad. She emerged as an independent performer and choreographer in her twenties and runs a dance school named Sree Raja Rajeswari Arts Academy in Tirupathi. She also works as a kuchipudi lecturer at Tirumal Tirupathi Devasthanam. In 2005, she received a doctorate in Kangundi Kuppam Veedhi Natakam – Kuchipudi Bhagavatham-Tunanathmaka Pariseelana.

Performing career Srinivasan is an accomplished kuchipudi dancer. She started performing at a young age. Her poised ability to hold difficult balancing poses along with her finely honed sense of rhythm can easily dazzle audiences. In 2006. she performed in the USA organized and conducted by Raaja Raajeswari Arts Academy of Hyderabad.

Awards

Natyamayuri Award State and national level award National scholarship for young artists Sangeeta Nataka Akademi Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for dedication towards kuchipudi dance

Dance performance details Place Year Organisers Item NatureSaharSa 1987 Inter State NIC Award CategoryCuddapah 1987 Campaign Programme Kuchipudi Awarded Best Dancer Etah (U.P.) 1991 NICKuchipudi Awarded Best DancerArunachal Pradesh 1993 NIC AP Kuchipudi Certificate Award Badrachalam 1998 Sri RSD Kuchipudi Government programme Sreekalahasthi 1999 Mahashivarathri Award for Best Dancer United States 2006 Raaja Raajeswari Arts Academy Various Best performer AP Bhavan, New Delhi 2010 Govt. of AP Kuchipudi Certificate award

References