Madhavapeddi Murthy, son of the renowned Telugu playback singer Late Madhavapeddi Satyam, is a distinguished Kuchipudi dancer trained under the illustrious guru Vempati Chinna Satyam, founder of the Kuchipudi Art Academy in Chennai. Murthy has portrayed significant roles in various dance dramas choreographed by his guru and has graced major festivals such as the Taj Mahotsav, Puri Beach Festival, Malabar Mahotsav, Khajuraho Festival, and Kuchipudi Mahotsav, among others. Murthy's notable collaboration with dancer and actress Hema Malini began in 1990, resulting in a remarkable association spanning 32 years and over 750 ballet performances. In 50 years of his dancing careers and several memorable performances, Murthy has travelled globally and conducted insightful lecture demonstrations.

The audience in Puducherry witnessed Madhavapeddi Murthy's Kuchipudi performance for the first time. An evening of Kuchipudi by Madhavapeddi Murthy, the Artistic Director of Siva Foundation, was organised by Lalit Verma's Aurodhan. At the start of the performance, Murthy mentioned that he would provide a glimpse of Kuchipudi to give the audience an understanding of this classical dance form.

The evening started with Ganesa Kautuvamm choreographed by guru Vempati Chinna Satyam. It was an effortless performance by Murthy, his daughter Pratibha and two of his students, Bhuvneshwari Subbiah and Sneha Mohan. Ganesha Kauthuvam in Kuchipudi is so rhythmic that even a non-dancer would start dancing.

A Kuchipudi performance is incomplete without Bhama Kalapam.  Siddhendra Yogi, Kuchipudi's father, propagated the Bhama cult, also known as Madhura bhakti. Every devotee of Krishna considered themselves as Krishna's beloved, Satyabhama and imagined Krishna as a supreme lover. Murthy gave a glimpse of Bhama Kalpam by performing Pathra pravesh daravu and narrating the tale of Bhama Kalapam as a prelude.

In olden times, Bhama Kalapam artists performed the piece on three consecutive nights. Bhama Kalapam won the heart of Abdul Hasan Tahnishah of Golcond. In 1678, the Nawab of Golconda , Abdul Hasan Tahnishah visited Masulipatnam. The Kuchipudi dancers over there performed Bhama Kalapam for him. Pleased with the performance, the nawab issued a copper plate grant donating land to the dancers as an agraharam village, free of taxes and levies. That land came to be known as Kuchipudi village, the only village named after Indian classical dance!

The evening was set to witness the romance of Bhama and Krishna. The lyrics and music of Bhama Kalapam are romantic from beginning to end. When you watch Bhama Kalapam, you know that nobody is as beautiful as Bhama. After Bhama Pravesham, Murthy performed a part of tarangam with his daughter and students.

Guru Vempati Chinna Satyam has dedicated his life to preserving the purity of Kuchipudi while embracing innovation. He even choreographed pieces based on the stories of Rabindranath Tagore.

That evening, Murthy performed a mesmerising Kuchipudi dance set to a diverse musical selection: the soulful ghazal "Ae Husna Beparwah Tuje" by Ghulam Ali, the evocative "Nostalgia" by Yanni, and a tarana by the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar.