Sanjukta was the first Odia woman to embrace this ancient classical dance at an early age and ensure its grand revival.

[2][3] In recognition of her contribution to dancing and associated activities, she was honoured with one of India's highest civilian awards the, Padma Shri (1975).

She recognised the talent in her daughter, and encouraged her despite some initial resistance from Abhiram Misra, Sanjukta's father.

The state government awarded her a scholarship to learn Kathak from Guru Hazarilal in Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai.

[6] Sanjukta Panigrahi spent some time at the International School of Theatre Anthropology at Bologna, Italy in 1986, 1990 and 1992, teaching short courses and demonstrating Odissi dance to foreign students, further adding to its global popularity.

Together with her musician husband, Sanjukta has left behind a rich repertoire of Odissi dance, both modern as well as classical, ranging from traditional numbers based on the Jayadeva's Gita Govinda to the padabalies of Surdas, Chaupais from the Ramacharitamanasa of Tulasidas and the songs of Vidyapati and Rabindranath Tagore, with piece-de-resistance being, the innovative Yugma-Dwanda: a sort of Jugalbandi between the dancer and the musician in Raga Bageshri, composed by Pandit Raghunath Panigrahi and the sublime, Moksha Mangalam which in time had become her personal signature, which she used to end her performances, on an ethereal note.

[8] In the words of noted dance critic, Dr. Sunil Kothari, "Sanjukta gave up Bharatnatyam and devoted her life to Odissi, putting her signature on the form.

[3] Sanjukta left behind many accomplished students, including Dr. Chitra Krishnamurti, director of Nrityalaya (an Odissi school in Potomac) and Joyoti Das a resident of Melbourne, a devout disciple of her in Australia, the artistic director and teacher of Kalamandir School of Indian classical dances, dedicated to maintain the continuum of Sanjukta's Odissi style.

Since 2001, every year on her birth anniversary, the trust has been giving away scholarships to budding dancers, and awards excellence in the field of Odissi dance.