Parents
Prof. Santappa’s father Shri Basappa was a leading exporter of leather from Ceded Districts during the 1930’s and his mother Smt Salamma was from Gooty.
Family
Prof. Santappa’s wife was Mrs. Dhanalakshmi Devi (she passed away at their Chennai home in 2018), and they had three daughters and two sons (Umesh Chandra and Ravi Shankar). His children are all professionally qualified and well-settled in life.