“Patronage from the government and cultural organisations is needed if the ancient dance form ‘Andhra Natyam’ to flourish. Though a good number of youngsters are learning this dance form, they are not sure whether they can eke out a livelihood from this art,” says Kala Krishna, Andhra Natyam guru and visiting faculty in Hyderabad Central University.
“Following the promulgation of Madras Devadasis (Prevention of Dedication) Act in 1947, women from Devadasi families started switching over to Bharata Natyam and Kuchipudi. Though Bharata Natyam is also from the Devadasi culture, Tamil Nadu succeeded in protecting the dance form from the Act,” he says, admitting that there was no support for Andhra Natyam from people here then. It was because of the effort of Guru Nataraja Ramakrishna that Andhra Natyam was revived.
“We have made recommendations to the government that classical music and dance must be a part of the curricula from the primary-level. It will help students develop a penchant for the arts,” he says.
There is no support for Andhra Natyam students from the government in the form of scholarships. They are not even getting a good number of stage opportunities. As a result, some of them are switching over to Kuchipudi and Bharata Natyam
Kala Krishna
Andhra Natyam guru
