Popular kuchipudi classical dancer, well known for introducing the dance form of Perini, Nataraj Ramakrishna died on Tuesday morning at in the neurology department of the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences while undergoing treatment for a stroke on his brain and other age-related ailments.
He was admitted to a private hospital in the city on May 27 but was shifted to the NIMS as his condition deteriorated a week ago.
Nataraj Ramakrishna was born on March 31, 1923 on the Island of Bali in Indonesia.
He introduced Perini form of dance, which highlighted the role of warriors under King Ganapathi Devudu of the Kakatiya dynasty.
He is also credited with the revival of the Andhra Natyam dance form, a devotional temple dance tradition performed in Andhra Pradesh for over 400 years until virtually extinct.
The dance maestro devoted his life to keeping the classical and ancient dance forms alive.
During his sixty years of continuous study on Kuchipudi dance forms, Perini Nataraj Ramakrishna authored 40 books on the subject.
Over his long career he has trained many dancers and has written and choreographed highly acclaimed dance dramas. His numerous disciples are expected to carry forward his legacy.
A man of many hues, Perini was the former chairman of the state’s Sangeeta Nataka Academy, a dance artist, guru, scholar, and a musicologist.
He worked in the erstwhile USSR and France to propagate the Indian dance art while undertaking a comparative study of Indian and western Classical and folk dances during his days as a research scholar sponsored by the Government of India.
His body was shifted to his residence in Begumpet for public darshan. The last rites of Ramakrishna will be performed at Domalguda in the city on Wednesday.