Dances in India can be classified into three forms: classical, folk and modern. Classical is the oldest form. Folk dance had mainly remained an expression of the simple joys and rituals of village communities in rural areas. Modern dance is a mixture of the above two with some impact of the west. Through this article we can discuss more about classical dances.

The chief source of classical dance is Bharata Muni’s ‘Natya Sastra’, a comprehensive treatise on dance. There are four main types of classical dances: Bharatnattyam, Kathakali, Kathak and Manipuri. In 1958, Sangeet Natak Academy accorded classical status to two more dances- Kuchipudi of Andhra Pradesh and Odissi of Orissa.

Bharatnatyam originated in Tamil Nadu. It consists of six parts. The dancer moves her body rhythmically, her face becomes a mirror of various emotions and registers several shades of expressions familiar to us in everyday life, accompanied by hand gestures, which are symbolic and form a language in themselves. The famous 20^th century dancers of Bharatnatyam include T. Balasarawathi, Rukmini Devi, Yamini Krishnamurthi and Shanta Rao.

Kathakali originated in the 17^th century in Kerala. Its themes are taken from the Ramayana, the Siva purana, the Bhagavata purana and the Mahabharata. It mainly depicts the tandava mood. Some of the well-known exponents of kathakali are, Guru Chandu Panickar, Guru Kunju Kurup, Ramunni Nair and Kalamandalam Krishnan Nair.

Kathak flourished in North India under the Mughal rule. It portrays the immortal love of Radha and Krishna as it blossomed on the banks of Yamuna. It is popular with both male and female performers. Notable kathak exponents have been Shambhu Maharaj, Sunder Prasad, Birju Maharaj, Gopi Krishan, Sitara Devi and Damayanti Joshi.

Manipuri originated in Manipur. It is a slow dance. Its main exponents are Atomba Singh and Amubi Singh.

Kuchipudi is named so owing its origin to the village Kuchipudi in Andra Pradesh. Sidhyendra Yogi is considered the creator of this dance-drama in the 17^th century. The dance-drama begins with worship rituals. Earlier, only men used to perform this but now women have also taken it up. All the four elements of acting-dance, costume, song and psychological resources are used in it. Guru Chinta Krihnamuthi and Yamini Krishnamurthi are the well-known artists of this dance-drama.

Odissi is regarded as the true inheritor of the Natya Sastra, because most of the dance units described in it can be found only in Odissi. Indrani Rehman and Kelu Charan Mahapatra are the notable propagators of this dance form in the 20^th century.

Article Posted By : aneeshmissu  On June 11, 2013lView All Articles

What are the main classicall dances of India ?

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Classical dances of India