Padma Shri awardee and renowned Kuchipudi exponent Shobha Naidu passes away at 64

Renowned Kuchipudi dancer, Dr Shobha Naidu (64), passed away at a private hospital after prolonged illness in the early hours of Wednesday, her family members said.

Her husband Arjun Rao, a retired IAS officer, said she had been suffering from a neurological problem for a long time. She was admitted to the hospital a few days ago, when her condition worsened. She breathed her last at around 1.30 am.

Born in 1956 at Anakapalle in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam district, Shobha Naidu had been one of the prominent exponents of Kuchipudi dance in the country. A disciple of Kuchipudi maestro Vempati Chinna Satyam, she had started giving stage performance at a very young age.