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Nurturing Kathak in the Southern Heartland
HIS MISSION IS TO PROMOTE KATHAK IN SOUTH INDIA
The ankle bells of Bharata Natyam, Kuchipudi and
Hyderabad's very own Andhra Natyam reverberate
to such an extent that it is not an easy task to keep
the ghungroos (anklets) of other dance forms like Kathak
jingling.
However, tackling this difficult task, Anji Babu
is keeping Kathak vibrantly active in Hyderabad.
Born to Yerramsetty Subrahamanyam Naidu and Laxmi
Naidu in Guntur on July 29, 1950, Anji Babu was
studying in Hyderabad's Chaderghat Boys' High School,
where he often participated in folk dances presented
on special occasions like the school's annual day celebrations.
Recognising his talent, mother Laxmi Naidu got him
enrolled in the Government School of Music and
Dance. Thus the twelve-year old Anji Babu began
to learn Kathak from Vithal Rao. Later he continued
with Pandit Ramakrishna Shukla, brother-in-law
of the Lucknow Gharana's famed Kathak maestro Shambhu
Maharaj and in 1968 took his diploma in Kathak.
His skill in dancing was recognised all over India
and he was invited to give performances even while he
was studying. His talents were recognized by the Sangeet
Natak Akademi which gave him a scholarship enabling
him to study Kathak under Sukhdeo Maharaj at
the prestigious Kathak Kala Kendra of Delhi. 
Anji Babu had an inherent interest in teaching. He
started teaching Kathak and established Navarasa
Art Akademi in 1980, which in 1984 got converted
into Kathak Kala Kendra. Accomplished dancers
like Swapna Sundari, Vijay, Shovana Narayan and
Uma Sharma have been tutored by Anji Babu at
some point of their careers.
Anji Babu has given Kathak performances all over the
world. He saw these foreign trips as an opportunity
to spread this form of art and conducted workshops and
training sessions in Kathak. Sixty students were trained
under him in Houston and in Texas he worked
as the resident Kathak instructor.
Also an innovative choreographer, he has conceived
and directed over 40 dance ballets. In his zeal to promote
Kathak as well as other dance forms in the southern
heartland of Hyderabad, Anji Babu has also promoted
and brought over several dance troupes from various
countries. That's not all, to perpetuate his experience
and knowledge he wrote and published Kathak Nritya
Vikasam, the first-ever Telugu book on Kathak. The
Deccan Dance Festival, a festival of dance held
every year is a brain child of none other than Anji
Babu.
Anji Babu has received several awards, one of the most
significant ones being from the Telugu University
for his outstanding contribution to Kathak in Andhra
Pradesh.
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