Sushma Krishnamurthy Rao (born 23 February 1985) is an Indian actress, dancer and television host. As an actress, she is best known for her work in Kannada television. After having made her debut in S. Narayan's ''Bhageerathi'', she became recognized for her role as Bhavana in soap opera ''Guptagamini''. An accomplished bharatanatyam dancer, she is recipient of the 1997 Aryabhata Award for Dance.

Biography

Rao was born and raised in Koppa, a town in Chikmagalur district of India's

Karnataka State Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from KLE College and also holds a bachelor's degree in Hindi language that she obtained from the University of Madras. A trained Bharatanatyam dancer, Rao performed at events in New Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur and Thiruvananthapuram and in the Hampi Utsav. She is a recipient of Karnataka State and Central scholarships ( NCERT) in dance. She also won the Aryabhata award for dance in 1997. Rao began her television career on being urged to try acting by actor

Vijay Kashi Vijay Kashi is an Indian actor in the Kannada film industry. Some of his notable films are ''Undu Hoda Kondu Hoda'' (1992), ''Mangalyam Tantunanena'' (1998), ''Suryavamsha'' (1999). Personal life Vijay Kashi is married to Vyjayanthi Kashi. They ...

. During this time, she was learning the

Kuchipudi Kuchipudi () ( Telugu: ) is one of the eight major Indian classical dances. It originates from a village named Kuchipudi in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance, with its roots in the ancient Hindu Sa ...

under Vyjayanthi Kashi. Rao made her television debut with S. Narayan's ''Bhageerathi'' in which she played Veena, the sister of

Hema Prabhath Hema Prabhath, also known professionally as Hema Panchamukhi, is an Indian actress known for her work in Kannada cinema. Some of the films of Hema Prabhath as an actress include ''America! America!!'' (1997), '' Dore'' (1995), ''Ravimama'' (19 ...

's character. She then appeared in ''Swathi Muttu'' as Pallavi, in ''Bidige Chandrama'' as Shashikala, before starring in ''Yaava Janmada Maitri'' as Ananya in one of three roles, in ''Guptagamini'' as Bhavana, and in ''Sose Thanda Sowbhagya'' as Keerthi. Rao was awarded the Aryabhata Award for Acting in 2005, the Karnataka Television Association Award for Best Actress for her performance in ''Guptagamini'' and the Zee Kannada Best Actress Award for ''Sose Thanda Sowbhagya'' in 2012. In 2020, Rao hosted the game show ''

Genes In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

'' that "showcase family bonding" and invited television actors as participants.

Television

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rao, Sushma K. Indian television actresses Indian women television presenters Indian game show hosts Indian female classical dancers Performers of Indian classical dance Living people People from Chikmagalur district Actresses from Karnataka Actresses in Kannada television 21st-century Indian actresses 1985 births