From stage to screen, Sandhya Rao spreads her wings
The danseuse is all set to play lead role in dance-oriented film
Sandhya Raju, daughter of billionaire industrialist Ramco Group Chairman P.R. Venketrama Raja and daughter-in-law of Satyam Computers founder Ramalinga Raju, is perhaps best known in her own right as an exponent of Kuchipudi dance. But she’s now all set to flaunt a new dimension of her talents — acting. Sandhya will be seen in the lead role in Natyam, a Telugu film directed by Revanth Korukonda. As the title implies, the story will revolve around dance.
“But there’s more to it; the film also explores the beautiful relationship between a student and her teacher and the student’s desire to pursue her dream of being a dancer,” explains Sandhya. Cinema was never a part of her life while growing up, reveals Sandhya. “I was always inclined towards dance and it has been in the forefront of my life. But after I became an independent artiste and set up my own dance academy, I realised that artistic flair shouldn’t be confined to dance,” she says, adding that as a consequence, she started to explore modelling, and later, acting. As she kept meeting creative people, her
My experience in FICCI opened me up a lot. My conversations with women from different walks of life made me realise that a lot of women lack the financial independence to make decisions. This realisation liberated me and made my professional drive more powerful
— Sandhya Raju
I was always inclined towards dance and it has been in the forefront of my life. But after I became an independent artiste and set up my own dance academy, I realised that artistic flair shouldn’t be confined to dance alone
inclination towards cinema gradually went up. “Also, when I was learning dance, we used to look up to students of our guru (Padma Bhushan Vempati Chinna Satyam) who taught actors like
Hema Malini, Bhanupriya, Jayalalitha, NTR, etc. So I saw acting as an extension of my dance career, and a natural progression,” says Sandhya.