Dance forms in India

The two major dance forms in India are classical and folk dance

Folk dance → A traditional dance of a particular group of people or place is folk dance. Folk dance is performed according to folk music. It belongs to a particular community, place, or caste. Example → Bihu (Assam), Garba (Gujarat), Bhangra (Punjab), etc.

Classical dance→ The dance describing the characters of God, Goddess, and religious scriptures is called classical dance. There are proper rules and dress for classical dances.

Folk Dance Vs Classical Dance

The major difference between Classical and Folk dance is the origin. Classical dance has a deeprooted relationship with the Natya Shastra where the specific features of each of the Classical dance forms have been mentioned. Folk dance, on the other hand, emerged from the local tradition of the respective state, ethnic or geographic regions.

Historical Evidence:-

I. The first formal mention of dance is found in Bharata Muni’s famous work Natya Shastra.

II. As per Natya Shastra, there are two basic aspects of Indian classical dance.

  • Lasya– It denotes grace, bhava, rasa, and abhinaya. It is symbolic to the feminine features of dance as an art form.
  • Tandava– This is symbolic of male aspects of dance and has more emphasis on rhythm and movement.

    • The 9 basic technicalities that are expressed in the classical dance are given below:

    1. Shringar: Love

    2. Hasya: Humorous

    3. Karuna: Sorrow

    4. Raudra: Anger

    5. Veer: Heroism

    6. Bhayanak: Fear

    7. Vibhatsa: Disgust

    8. Adbhut: Wonder

    9. Shaant: Calm

  • These moods and expressions are emoted through the use of Mudras – a combination of hand gestures and body postures.
  • 108 fundamental mudra

    • Classical Dance in India

  • Sangeet Natak Academy (India’s National Academy) recognizes only eight classical dances of India.
  • Governed by the rules of Natyashastra.
  • Guru-shishya tradition is also seen in these dances.
    • Dance FormState of Origin
    BharatnatyamTamil Nadu
    KathakUttar Pradesh
    KuchipudiAndhra Pradesh
    OdissiOdisha
    KathakaliKerala
    SattriyaAssam
    ManipuriManipur
    MohiniyattamKerala
    Bharatnatyam - Tamil Nadu
  • Bharatanatyam is a dance of Tamil Nadu in south India, which is earlier known as ‘daasiattam’.
  • Oldest among all classical dance forms, Bharatnatyam derives its name from Bharata Muni.
  • The efforts of E. Krishna Iyer, a prominent freedom fighter, revived this dance form.
  • Rukmini Devi Arundale gave the dance global recognition.
  • Theme- " Religious and devotional”.
  • Instruments used: Mridangam, flute, violin, veena, nattuvangam.
  • Famous Bharatanatyam dancers: Mallika Sarabhai, Yamini Krishnamurthy (also famous for Kuchipudi), Alarmel Valli,Padma Subrahmanyam, Rukmini Devi Arundale, Lakshmi Viswanathan, Mrinalini Sarabhai, Mallika Sarabhai (also famous for Kuchipudi).
    • Kathakali – Kerala

    Kathakali is a dance of Kerala in south India.

    Ramanattam, Koodiyattam, and Krishnattam – separate dance forms - evolved and became the source of Kathakali.

    It was revived in the 1930s by the famous Malayali poet V. N. Menon under the patronage of Mukunda Raja.

    Kathakali is essentially an all-male troupe performance.

    Elaborate facial makeup along with headgear is used:

    • Green color – richness and decency.
    • Red color – dominance.
    • Black color – for evil.
    • Yellow color – for women.

    Kathakali is remarkable in the representation of the rasas through movements of the eye and eyebrows.

    Kathakali symbolizes the element of the sky.

    The language used for Kathakali songs is Manipravalam, i.e. a mixture of Malayalam and Sanskrit.

    Instruments used: Chenda, madalam, chengila, idakka, and shankhu.

    Famous Kathakali dancers: Vazhenkada Kunchu Nair, Kottakkal Sivaraman, Kalamandalam Gopi, Kalamandalam Nair, Kalamandalam Vasu Pisharody, Guru Kunchu Kurup, Gopi Nath, Rita Ganguly.

    Manipuri – Manipur

    Manipuri is an important classical dance form that originated in the state of Manipur in the Northeastern part of India.

    Manipuri dance form finds its mythological origin in the celestial dance of Shiva and Parvati in the valleys of Manipur.

    The dance gained prominence with the advent of Vaishnavism in the 15th century.

    Then, Krishna became the central theme of this dance form. It is performed generally by females.

    Rabindranath Tagore brought back the dance form into the limelight when he introduced it in Santiniketan.

    Female - dress called patloi and lehenga called kumin. A transparent odni is worn on the head and covers the face.

    Male - usually saffron dress depicting Lord Krishna.

    Instruments used: Pung, cymbals.

    Famous Manipuri dancers: Guru Bipin Singh, Rajkumar Singhajit Singh, Darshana Jhaveri, Sohini Ray.

    Odissi – Odisha
  • Odissi dance is the classical dance form of Odisha that has its origin in temples.
  • The caves of Udayagiri-Khandagiri provide some of the earliest examples of Odissi dance.
  • The dance form derives its name from the ‘Odra nritya’ mentioned in Natya Shastra.
  • It was primarily practiced by the ‘maharis’ and patronized by the Jain king Kharvela.
  • Odissi gained international acclaim due to the efforts of Charles Fabri and Indrani Rehman.
  • The dance form symbolizes the element of water.
  • Instruments used: Mardala, Harmonium, Flute, Sitar, Violin, Cymbals.
  • Famous Odissi dancers: Priyambada Hejmadi, Sanjukta Panigrahi, Minati Mishra, Kumkum Mohanty, Oopalie Oparajita, Sangeeta Das, Guru Pankaj Charan Das, Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra, Sonal Mansingh.
    • Kathak (North India, mainly in Uttar Pradesh)
  • A classical dance indigenous to northern India, Kathak has developed under the influence of Hindu Muslim cultures.
  • Under the Mughal emperors and their nobles, Kathak was performed in the court, where it acquired its present features and developed into a form of dance with a distinctive style.
  • Under the patronage of Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of Awadh, it grew into a major art form.
  • The classical style of Kathak was revived by Lady Leela Sokhey in the 20th century.
  • The origin of this dance form is attributed to the traveling storytellers or kathakars of ancient India.
  • Female Dress - lehenga choli or churidar kameez.
  • Male Dress - bare chest and dhoti or kurta churidar.
  • An important feature of Kathak is the development of different gharanas as it is based on the Hindustani style of music:
    • Lucknow: Nawab Wajid Ali Khan.
    • Jaipur: Initiated by Bhanuji.
    • Raigarh: Raja Chakradhar Singh.
    • Banaras: It developed under Janaki prasad.
  • Instruments used: Tabla, sarangi, or harmonium with manjira.
  • Famous Kathak dancers: Shambhu Maharaj, Sitara Devi, Birju Maharaj, Roshan Kumari, Saswati Sen, Rohini Bhate, Shovana Narayan, Lacchu Maharaj.
    • Kuchipudi – Andhra Pradesh
  • Kuchipudi is the classical dance of Andhra Pradesh in south India.
  • Kuchipudi derives its name from the Andhra village of Kusselavapuri or Kuchelapuram village in the Krishna district.
  • The dance is accompanied by a song which is usually Carnatic music.
  • Natya tarangini is a school for Kuchipudi.
  • In the 17th century, Siddhendra Yogi formalized and systematized the tradition.
  • Balasaraswati and Ragini Devi revived this dance form.
  • Solo elements in Kuchipudi are:
    • Manduk Shabnam – Tells the story of a frog.
    • Tarangam – The dancer performs with his/her feet on the edges of a brass plate and balances a pot of water on the head or a set of diyas.
    • Jala Chitra Nrityam – In this item, the dancer draws pictures on the floor with his or her toes while dancing.
  • Instruments used: Mridangam, violin, flute, tambura.
  • Famous Kuchipudi dancers: Vempati Chinna Satyam, Uma Rama Sarma, Shobha Naidu, Vyjayanthi Kasha, Sreelakshmy Govardhanan, Radha Reddy and Raja Reddy, Yamini Krishnamurthy, Indrani Rehman.
    • Mohiniattam - Kerala
  • Mohiniyattam is a classical solo dance form of Kerala performed by women and gets its name from 'Mohini' (‘Mohini’ was the Incarnation of Lord Vishnu and ‘attam’ means dance), the celestial enchantress of Hindu mythology.
  • After it had fallen into obscurity, the famous Malayali poet V. N. Menon revived it along with Kalyani Amma.
  • Generally narrates the story of the feminine dance of Vishnu.
  • The Lasya aspect (beauty, grace) of dance is dominant in a Mohiniattam recital.
  • The element of Air is symbolized through a Mohiniattam performance.
  • Instruments used: Mridangam or Madhalam, Idakka, flute, veena, kuzhitalam.
  • Famous Mohiniyattam dancers: Kalamandalam Kalyanikutty Amma, Kalamandalam Hymavathy, Sunanda Nair, Gopika Varma, Neena Prasad, Sunanda Nair, Jayaprabha Menon, Madhuri Amma.
    • Sattriya - Assam
  • Sattriya is an Indian classical dance that has its origins in the Vaishnava monasteries (sattras) of Assam.
  • Sattriya dance in its modern form was introduced by the Vaishnava saint Shankaradeva in the 15th century A.D in Assam.
  • In 2000, the Sangeet Natak Academy recognized Sattriya as a classical dance.
  • It finds mention in the ancient text ‘Natya Shastra’ of sage Bharat Muni. It is inspired by the Bhakti Movement.
  • The dance is generally performed in groups by male monks known as ‘Bhokots’.
  • Instruments used: Khols, Talas, flute.
  • Famous Sattriya dancers: Ghanakanta Bora, Ananda Mohan Bhagawati, Sharodi Saikia, Bhabananda Baryan, Jatin Goswami.

    • Folk Dances of India

  • Folk dance is common people's dance.
  • Folk dancing doesn’t have strict rules; its main aim is fun and brotherhood, whereas Classical dance is done by professionals, requiring a lot of training, and generally representing some form of rituals.
  • A few important points on Chhau Dance are as mentioned: The word Chhau originates from ‘Chhaya’ meaning shadow. It is a form of mask dance that uses vigorous martial movements to narrate mythological stories.
  • As a mask dance, the Chhau dance is denoted.
  • Energetic martial art movements are a basic feature of Chhau Dance.
  • Serpent Dance and Peacock Dance are a few narrations used in Chhau Dance.
  • There are three main styles of Chhau dance –
    • Saraikela Chhau in Jharkhand
    • Mayurbhanj Chhau in Odisha
    • Purulia Chhau in West Bengal
  • Of these, Mayurbhanj Chhau artists don’t wear masks. In 2010, UNESCO inscribed Chhau in the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
    • Indian StateFolk Dances
    Andhra PradeshVilasini Natyam, Andhra Natyam, Bhamakalpam, Veeranatyam, Dappu, Tappeta Gullu, Lambadi, Dhimsa, Kolattam, Butta Bommalu
    AssamBihu, Bichhua, Natpuja, Maharas, Kaligopal, Bagurumba, Naga dance, Khel Gopal, Tabal Chongli, Canoe, Jhumura Hobjanai
    Arunachal PradeshAji Lamu, Chalo, Hiirii Khaniing, Popir, Ponung, Pasi Kongki, Rekham Pada, Roppi
    BiharJata-Jatin, Bakho-Bakhain, Panwariya, Sama Chakwa, Bidesia
    ChhattisgarhGaur Maria, Panthi, Raut Nacha, Pandwani, Vedamati, Kapalik, Bharthari Charit, Chandaini
    GoaModni, Jhagor, Khol, Dakni, Shigmo, Ghode
    GujaratGarba, Dandiya Ras, Tippani Juriun, Bhavai
    HaryanaJhumar, Phag, Daph, Dhamal, Loor, Gugga, Khor, Gagor
    Himachal PradeshJhora, Jhali, Chharhi, Dhaman, Chhapeli, Mahasu, Nati, Dangi
    Jammu and KashmirRauf, Hikat, Mandjas, Kud Dandi Nach, Damali, Dumhal
    Andhra PradeshVilasini Natyam, Andhra Natyam, Bhamakalpam, Veeranatyam, Dappu, Tappeta Gullu, Lambadi, Dhimsa, Kolattam, Butta Bommalu
    AssamBihu, Bichhua, Natpuja, Maharas, Kaligopal, Bagurumba, Naga dance, Khel Gopal, Tabal Chongli, Canoe, Jhumura Hobjanai
    Arunachal PradeshAji Lamu, Chalo, Hiirii Khaniing, Popir, Ponung, Pasi Kongki, Rekham Pada, Roppi
    BiharJata-Jatin, Bakho-Bakhain, Panwariya, Sama Chakwa, Bidesia
    ChhattisgarhGaur Maria, Panthi, Raut Nacha, Pandwani, Vedamati, Kapalik, Bharthari Charit, Chandaini
    GoaModni, Jhagor, Khol, Dakni, Shigmo, Ghode
    GujaratGarba, Dandiya Ras, Tippani Juriun, Bhavai
    HaryanaJhumar, Phag, Daph, Dhamal, Loor, Gugga, Khor, Gagor
    Himachal PradeshJhora, Jhali, Chharhi, Dhaman, Chhapeli, Mahasu, Nati, Dangi
    Jammu and KashmirRauf, Hikat, Mandjas, Kud Dandi Nach, Damali, Dumhal
    JharkhandBidesia, Danga, Karma, Sarahul, Sohrai, Alkap, Paika, Barao, Jhitka
    KarnatakaYakshagana, Huttari, Suggi, Kunitha, Karga, Lambi
    KeralaOttam Thulal, Kaikottikali, Tappatikkali
    MaharashtraLavani, Nakata, Koli, Lezim, Gafa, Dahikala Dasavtar or Bohada
    Madhya PradeshJawara, Matki, Aada, Khada Nach, Phulpati, Grida Dance, Selalarki, Selabhadoni, Maanch
    ManipurDol Cholam, Thang Ta, Lai Haraoba, Pung Cholom, Nat Rash, Rakhal, Raukhat
    MeghalayaKa Shad Suk Mynsiem, Baala, Nongkrem, Laho
    MizoramCheraw Dance, Khuallam, Chailam, Sawlakin, Chawnglaizawn, Zangtalam, Par Lam, Tlanglam, Cherokan, Khanatm
    NagalandChong, Khaiva, Lim Nuralim
    OdishaSavari, Ghumara, Painka, Munari, Chhau
    West BengalKathi, Gambhira, Dhali, Jatra, Baul, Marasia, Mahal, Keertan
    PunjabBhangra, Giddha, Daff, Dhaman, Bhand, Naqual, Kikli, Jhoomar
    RajasthanGhumar, Chakri, Ganagor, Jhulan Leela, Jhuma, Suisini, Ghapal, Kalbeliya
    SikkimSinghi Chham, Chu Faat, Gayley-Yang Dance, Ghantu, Kinchum – Chu – Bomsa, Maarooni Dance, Nyongri – Nyot, Shelo, Sherpa Dance, Tamang Selo, Yak Chham
    Tamil NaduKummi, Kolattam, Kavadi, Karagam
    TripuraBizu Dance, Cheraw, Dailo Nritya, Gajan, Galamuchamo, Garia Dance, Hai Hak Dance, Hozagiri, Jhum Dance, Lebang Boomani, Sangrai – Mog Dance, Wya Dance
    Uttar PradeshNautanki, Raslila, Kajri, Jhora, Chappeli, Jaita
    UttarakhandGarhwali, Kumayuni, Kajari, Jhora, Raslila, Chappeli
    LakshadweepLava, Kolkali, Parichakali
    Bihu
    • The Bihu dance is a folk dance from the Indian State of Assam related to the festival of Bihu.
    • There are three festivals in Bihu. Bhogali or Magh Bihu is celebrated in January, Rongali or Bohag Bihu in April and Kongali or Kati Bihu in October.
    • The most colorful and important one is the spring festival called Bohag Bihu which is celebrated in the month of April.
    • This Joyous dance is performed by both men and women.
    • Dancers wear traditionally colourful Assamese clothing.
    Bhangra
    • The Bhangra is a folk dance from the Indian State of Punjab.
    • Bhangra dance is conducted by Punjab farmers to celebrate the coming of the harvest season.
    Ghoomar
    • Ghoomar is a traditional women’s folk dance from the Indian State of Rajasthan.
    • It is traditionally performed during auspicious occasions, Diwali, Holi and on a bride's arrival at her marital home.
    Garba
    • Garba is the popular form of folk dance from the Indian State of Gujarat. It is performed for nine days during the festival of Navratri.
    Kummi
    • Kummi is the popular form of folk dance from the Indian State of Tamil Nadu.
    • Kummi is performed by women. The women stand in a circle and clapping their hands rhythmically.
    Dandiya Raas
    • 'Dandiya Raas' is a folk dance performed during the time of Navratri, with its origins in Gujarat.
    Bamboo Dance
    • Bamboo dance is tribal dance of Nagaland. This dance is exclusively performed by girls.
    Kolattam
    • Kolattam is a folk dance originated in Tamil Nadu. This dance form is popular throughout India.
    • Kolattam is performed by young girls with little stick held in hand to celebrate the birthday of God Rama.
    Ootam Tullal
    • Ootam Thullal is a folk dance of Kerala.
    • Kunchan Nambiar introduced it in the 18th century.