Yamini Krishnamurthy the iconic classical dance diva, passed away on 3 August 2024 in New Delhi. She had been suffering from age-related medical issues for several months,

A senior  alumna of Adyar Kalakshetra (Chennai) Yamini and her illustrious father Prof. Krishnamurthy shifted to New Delhi in the late fifty and early sixties.   Ever since she made her permanent home in Delhi. She was truly regarded as one and only "Raja Narthaki" 

Yamini Akka,(as we fondly addressed her)  born to an Andhra Bhrahmin Pandit Krishnamurthy and a Nepali mother must be given the credit of popularising the Bharatanaatyam in the Uttar Bhaarat and a pioneer in presenting three classical styles (Bharatanaatyam, Kuchipudi and Odissi). Once at a  program, she  made the presentation truly a Bhaarateeya naatyam(pan Indian style) bringing a new and dynamic mode of presentation encapsulating the three styles She kept the identity of the three styles intact, not mixing with one another. 

Yamini Akka joined Kalakshetra in 1952 and she was already a pupil teacher  along with  her contemporary Adyar K.Lakshman , handling junior classes. When I joined Kalakshetra in 1953 Yamini Akka was a full-fledged performer occupying primadona status along with her  classmate Pushpa Shankar who celebrated her 90th birthday recently. They used to be the  prime duo of the Kalakshetra repertory. She was also often paired with C.V.Chandrasekhar, especially in the production Kumara Sambhavam; they were paired as Manmatha and Rathi.  

When Yamini Akka awarded the then prestigious Cultural Scholarship in 1957 her father decided to put her under a traditional Natyacharya Kancheepuram Ellappa Pillai and later under Natyacharya Tanjavur Kittappa Pillai and  Dandayudapani Pillai under whom she started giving solo performances. Natyacharya Adyar K.Lakshmanan, her classmate and contemporary in Kalakshetra, conducted her performances regularly.   

Moving to the capital  was a wise decision, swaying a fresh cool southern breeze to the culture parched capital.  When she and her father moved to Delhi, her scholarly father's introduction to Naatya left an indelible impression, leading to her being presented to all visiting dignitaries in the capital as a true "Raja Narthaki."

Accompanying her performances was her sister Jyothishmathi with melodious and bhava laden singing,  added a new dimension to her entire orchestration lifting her performance to a sublime level of  yogic trance. That is what attracted the audience to watch her over and over again. Later years she could not really find a substitute for Jyothi's voice that merged with her dance as one entity making her feel handicapped.

 Yamini Krishnaamurthy's Nritya Kaustubha school for performing arts is one of the first and best training centers in the capital churning out excellent Naatya aspirants like Ramaa Vaidyanathan and others. 

Her niece Chitty Lakshmi was my student and seeing her perform Aananda nadamidum paadan in Kedaragowla raga, Yamini Akka was magnanimous in asking me to teach her that  repertoire and  included it in many of her performances. Her presence was conspicuous when we performed in Delhi.  Bharatakalanjali had sent a couple of assistants to teach in her centre. 

Last we met was during an alumni meet in Delhi when  she spoke about her Kalakshetra days and sat through our performance of excerpts from Kalakshetra, original casting of Gita Govindam,  Balagopal as Srikrishna and Shanta as Radha, a memorable  event. 

Padma Vibhushan awardee Yamini Krishnamurthy was a groundbreaking figure in Bharatanatyam, and her name will be etched in the cultural history of India.