Dance Forms of India:

Dance Forms

Important Points

Bharat Natyam

1. It is a classical Indian dance form that is popular and developed in

the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
2. It was earlier knowns as Dasi Attam or Sadir and was practised by
Devadasis in the South Indian temples so it went into disrepute.
3. E. Krishna Iyer raised the social status of Bharata Natyam and
greatly popularized it.
4. Rukmini Devi Arundale was instrumental in reviving Bharat
Natyam by learning it herself and infulencing others.
5. The music for Bharat Natyam dance form is the Carnatic Style.

Kathakali

1. This dance form originated in Kerala.

2. It is a stylized classical Indian dance-drama noted for the attractive
make-up of characters, elaborate costumes, detailed gestures and
well-defined body movements presented in tune with the anchor
playback music and complementary percussion.
3. It is regarded as the Ballet of the East.

Kathak

1. It is a popular dance form of North India, mainly Uttar Pradesh and

Rajasthan.
2. Kathak narrates stories form epics. The Radha-Krishna legend is
the central theme.
3. The name Kathak is derived from the Sanskrit word katha meaning
story, and kathaka in Sanskrit means he who tells a story, or to do
with stories.

Odishi

1. It is a classical dance form of Odisha.

2. It was evolved in the famous temple- Venkateshwara in
Bhubaneswar, the Jagannath Temple in Puri and the Konark Sun
Temple.
3. In the 12th century this dance form was performed by Maharis
(Oriya devadasis or temple girls) based on the lyrics of Jayadev's Gita
Govinda.
4. Later Gotipuas, men dressed as women performed this dance form
in the coutyard of the temple.
5. Padma Vibushan Kelucharan Mohapatra, Guru Pankaj Charan Das,
Guru Deba Prasad Das and Guru Raghunath Dutta were the four
major gurus who revived Odissi in the late forties and early fifties.
Sanjukta Panigrahi was a leading disciple of Kelucharan Mohapatra
who popularised Odissi dance form by performing in India and
abroad.

Manipuri

1. It is a classical dance form of Manipur.

2. The cult of Radha and Krishna, particularly the raslila, is central to
its themes.
3. The rasas of Bhagvad Gita are explicitly presented in the Manipuri
dance.

4. Guru Naba Kumar, Guru Bipin Singh, Rajkumar Singhajit Singh,

his wife Charu Sija Mathur, Darshana Jhaveri are some of the
prominent exponents of this classical dance form.
Kuchipudi

1. It is a classical dance form of Andhra Pradesh.

2. It came into existence in the 17th century through the Bhakti cult in
a village named Kuchelapuram in Andhra Pradesh.
3. The dance is accompanied by song which is typically Carnatic
music.
4. Hindu mythology, especially Krishna-Bhama-Rukmini stories are
central to its themes.