Vidya Rao is one of the leading performers of the delicate style of thumri-dadra singing.
For many years the closest disciple of the legendary singer, the late Smt Naina Devi, she has continued her study of this form under the renowned Smt Girija Devi and Smt Shanti Hiranand. Her training has therefore helped her imbibe the traditional gayaki of both Banaras and Lucknow styles. Her initial training in khayal was under the late Prof. B.N. Datta and thereafter under Pandit Mani Prasad of the Kirana gharana.