Sivaraju M S

🪔 About

Prof. M Samba Siva Raju is a distinguished figure in Indian classical dance, specializing in Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam, with a profound understanding of Carnatic music. He currently serves as a Professor of Dance and Head I/c of the Department of Music at the Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad, where he has taught for 22 years and previously headed the department between 2015 and 2018. His extensive training in Kuchipudi includes guidance from traditional gurus Sri Pasumarthy Seetaramayya (1978-1985) in Visakhapatnam, Sri Hemadri Chidambara Deekshitulu (1986-1989) in Rajahmundry, and Sri Vedantam Prahlada Sarma from Kuchipudi village. He also received Bharatanatyam training under Sri C. Ramamurthy (1980-1985) in Vizianagaram. Prof. Siva Raju holds a Ph.D. in 'Prahlada Yakshaganam,' a comparative study of Kūchipūdi and Melattur dance traditions, from the University of Hyderabad (1997), and an M.P.A. in dance (1989-1991) from the same institution. He also earned certificates in Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam from Government Music and Dance Colleges in 1984-1985. His choreographic works include a Kuchipudi dance recital for the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (2014), the large-scale dance show 'RANGOLI' involving 350 girls, and ballets such as 'Ekalavya' (1997) and 'Navadurgalu' (1998). He has also choreographed group dances for various educational institutions. Prof. Siva Raju's academic contributions include jointly published articles with his research scholar Ms. Smitha Madhav on topics like 'Innovations in Laya in the field of Bharatanatyam' and 'Bharatanatyam Dance Music – Then and Now.' He emphasizes the intrinsic connection between sound and movement, believing that sound dictates the grammar and vocabulary of dance.