Sampath Kumar D.Y.

Sampath Kumar D.Y.

Dr. Dasari Yethiraja Sampath Kumar shortly D. Y. Sampath Kumar (20 November 1927 - 21 May 1999), popularly referred to as "Andhra Jalari" or Fisherman of Andhra Pradesh, was an acclaimed Indian classical and folk dancer and choreographer. He thoroughly assimilated the ancient traditions of dance and music of South India under the tutelage of various gurus like Sri Peri Narasimha Shastry who taught him Veena and Duvvuri Jagannadha Sarma who taught him Bharatanatyam. With deep study and indepth investigation into various dance forms he improvised on their teachings and became a distinguished exponent of various dance styles like Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Yakshagana and folk dances. He gave thousands of performances with brilliant embellishments in several states and in many countries. From between 1954 and 1999 for 45 years, 60 renowned artistes under the able guidance and expert direction of Dr.Sampath Kumar through his famous dance institute Sri Geetha Nrithya Kalasala, Vizianagaram, (Andhra Pradesh) have given over 3000 dance performances on National and International stages and won many honors and awards.