KAKINADA: A family completely dedicated to Indian fine arts such as singing, dance and music. Kakinada’s Ramaraopeta resident Gady Venkata Ramana’s two daughters are postgraduates in Music. He and his wife Padmavati are singers, and his songs have been broadcast on Southampton Radio (London) and Awaaz 99.8 FM.
Ramana has a civil engineering background, but he loves music and singing. Therefore, his two daughters, Sriramaratna and Sai Krishna Priya, also became involved in music and earned master’s degrees in Music after completing their B.Tech in the ECE stream.
Venkata Ramana, a civil engineer who is at the heart of this story. Born in Chakradharpur, Jharkhand, to the Gady Krishna Murthy, a senior personnel officer in the railways, and Gady Srirama Ratnam, a native of Kakinada, he grew up in a home that valued service.
His formal path led him through engineering studies in Jharkhand and into a long career constructing projects across the country. Yet parallel to the blueprints and site visits ran a lifelong passion for music that never faded.
From childhood, Venkata Ramana used to sing Hindi, Telugu, Bengali and Odia songs. He was drawn especially to the golden voices of—Mukesh, Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Yesudas and Balasubrahmanyam—with Kishore’s songs.
Over the years he has performed on numerous stages, given concerts. He has published more than 200 songs, formed a musical association with Jitmohan Mitra. His professional life of precision and reliability never competed with this passion; it complemented it. “Building India’s infrastructure by day and keeping the melodies of classic cinema alive by night” is how those close to him describe the dual path he has walked with quiet consistency.
That same passion shaped his family. His wife, Padmavati, holds a BA and B.Ed. Beyond formal education she has made the rendering of Sanskrit verses, particularly Lalitha Sahasranamam, a living tradition at every festival, filling their home with the rhythm of devotion.
Their two daughters have taken the family’s musical commitment further still. Elder daughter Sriramaratna has performed as a singer at All India Radio Visakhapatnam, Naadha Neerajanam of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, and at the Tirupati and Annavaram temples. She is also a classical dancer, known for her renditions of Thillana. Younger daughter Sai Krishna Priya teaches music both online and offline. She works as a music teacher in RTM Institute which was established by legendary playback singer KS Chithra and music director Sonu Nigam. Together, the Gady family forms a rare continuum of art and dedication.