Gopi Krishna (dancer)

Gopi Krishna (22 August 1935 – 18 February 1994) was an Indian Kathak dancer, actor and choreographer. He also studied Bharatnatyam. In 1952, at the age of seventeen, Gopi Krishna became one of the youngest choreographers in Hindi film history when he was hired to choreograph dances.

Life and career

Gopi Krishna was born into a family of kathak dancers. His maternal grandfather Pandit Sukhdev Maharaj was a teacher of Kathak and his aunt Sitara Devi was a Kathak dancer who has performed around the world. When he was 11 years old, Gopi Krishna began training under his grandfather. He also learned from Shambhu Maharaj. In addition to Kathak, Gopi Krishna learned Bharatanatyam from Mahalingam Pillai and Govind Raj Pillai.^[1] Despite suffering from chronic asthma he continued to expand his dance repertoire,^[2] receiving the title of "Nataraj" (King of Dancers) at the All Bengal Music Conference at the age of 15.^[1]

In 1952, 17-year-old Gopi Krishna became one of the youngest choreographers in

Gopi Krishna was born on 22 August 1935 in Calcutta and died on 18 February 1994, of a heart attack, in Bombay.[2]^[5]

Style

Gopi Krishna was an exponent of the

Personal life

Gopi Krishna married Kathak dancer Savitri in 1964.^[2] His adopted daughter Shampa Sonthalia was born in 1980. She became a choreographer and dancer as well, placing as the winner in the 5th and 7th season of Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa where she was paired with actor Gurmeet Choudhary and Ashish Sharma respectively.^[6]

References