Sudha Rani is a classical dancer, teacher, choreographer, artistic director, research scholar of International repute. She has trained under the able guidance of living legends, Padmasri Dr. Nataraja Ramakrishna and Natya Shiromani, Dr. Uma Rama Rao.
Sudha is the daughter of Mrs.Vijayalakshmi and Mr. K.V.Raju, Retired Divisional Engineer from AP Transco and wife of Mr. K.B.Raju, Software Engineer, USA. She is blessed with two daughters, Kirtana and Nartana. She took to dance out of her inborn urge. She began her journey at the tender age of five and gave "Arangetram (First Performance)" in Bharatnatyam style, at the age of seven. Her parents being sincere Art lovers, encouraged her in artistic pursuit.
Sudha is a dynamic and a versatile dancer who has carved a special niche for herself in the fields of Bharatnatyam, Kuchipudi Dance, Andhra Natyam (Temple Dances) and folk dances of India. Her innate sense of rhythm, graceful bearing, subtle facial expression and appreciation of the arts are some of the qualities that give a new dimension to the traditional classical arts making her one of the finest exponents of these dance styles.
She has performed before Prime Minister of India, Mr. P.V. Narasimha Rao, President of India Mr. K.V.Narayanan, Vice President Mr. Krishna Kant, Governor of Maharastra Mr. Kona Prabhakar Rao, Minister of Small Scale Industries Mr. Ramachandra Reddy, Minister of Central Excise Mr. Ramakrishnam Raju, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Mr. Janardhana Reddy and several other dignitaries. She has also performed before City Mayor in USA such as Mrs. Jean L Harris (Eden Prairie, MN) and Mr. Steve Stockton (Bloomington, IL). She has also performed in the ancient temples like Kalahasti, Bhadrachalam, Ramappa, Vemulavada, Yaddagiri Gutta, Melattur and Tanjore.
Sudha is not only a dancer but academically she has Master Degrees in Accounting from Osmania University and in Performing Arts (Kuchipudi Dance) from Sri Potti Sriramulu Telugu University. She is a research scholar (PhD) in Department of Folklore, Dravidian University.
Dance for her is sheer joy at different levels, from the sublimely spiritual to the vibrantly physical, from the purely intellectual to the intensely emotional and at its most intense levels it is a joyous prayer with her very being. She says that "Dancing is the loftiest, the most moving and the most beautiful of Arts. It is no more a translation or abstraction from life, it is my life itself".
As an accomplished dancer and a Graded Artist, she has appeared on the TV Screen several times on National Telecast. She has acted in TV Serials like "Kumkuma Agni" (Women's Rights), "Alwar Kathalu" (Stories of the Alwars, who were great devotees of Sri MahaVishnu) and Annamayya Alapanalu Alamelumanga (Depiction of Annamayya Kirtanas by the great musician, Mrs.Sobha Raju). She has also worked as a Live Transmission Anchor in Doordarshan Kendra (Public Television), Hyderabad, and as a News Reader in Eenadu Television.
She has established "Lasyasudha School of Indian Dances" to advance and preserve Classical Arts representing both National and Ethnic Customs as they exist throughout India, promote and encourage the exchange of dances and dance related activities in the world and to effectively network those who support these objectives.
