KATHAK

Dance form State(s) of origin

Bharatanatyam Tamil Nadu
Kathak Northern India (Uttar Pradesh)
Kathakali Kerala
Kuchipudi Andhra Pradesh
Manipuri Manipur
Mohiniyattam Kerala
Odissi Odisha
Sattriya Assam
Additional:
Gaudiya West Bengal
Nritya

Bharata Natyam is considered to be the oldest form of dance and mother of all
other styles of classical dances in India. The classical Indian dance
Bharatanatyam originated from the art of temple dancers in the South India
state of Tamil Nadu. Bharatanatyam is reworked form of dance from the
traditional sadir and combination of expression,music,beat and dance.
Bharatanatyam or the fire dance is one of the most popular styles of dance
performed by male and female dancers.

Kathakali – Kerala
Kathakali is one of the most attracting classical Indian dance-dramas
performed by well trained artists. Kathakali is originated in God’s own country
Kerala in 17th century and got popular at every corner of India. The attractive
make-up, detailed gestures and elaborate costumes of the characters along
with body movements with playback music are best experience to watch.

Kuchipudi – Andhra Pradesh

The Classical Indian dance form originated Andhra Pradesh state and got its
name from Kuchipudi village near the Bay of Bengal. Kuchipudi is the most
popular traditional dance form in South India performed with violin, flute and
the tambura instruments and the characters first introduce themselves by the
dharavu.

Manipuri – Manipur
Manipuri dance form is one of the major classical dance forms of India,
originating from the north-eastern state Manipur. Manipuri themes are based
on the Raslila act of Radha and Krishna and are purely religious along with
spiritual experience.

Odissi – Orissa
Odissi is the oldest surviving dance form in India, originates from state of
Orissa. The Odissi dance form is known for its style, the independent
movement of head, chest and pelvis. Beautiful Odissi Dance is traditional and
ancient style of dance performed in the temples.

Sattriya – Assam
The Sattriya Dance of Assam is living tradition of state and one of the eight
major classical Indian dance traditions. Sattriya classical dance form is well
appreciated and practiced outside the state as well as outside of Indian
mainland.

Mohiniyattam – Kerala
Mohiniyattam is another classical dance style from Kerala state and one of the
eight principal Indian classical dance. The Mohiniyattam is a popular dance
form with a drama in dance, performed with subtle gestures and footwork.

Gaudiya Nritya- West Bengal

The Gaudiya Nritya is a classical Bengali Dance form ,performed with drama,
history, poetry, color and music. It's an ancient classical dance form originated
in West Bengal. It's mainly a temple art meant for spiritual expression.

KATHAK
Originating from Northern India, Kathak has gained immense
popularity for its sparkling footwork, fast whirling movements and
subtle abhinaya or mimetic dance. It almost never fails to capture the
audience and this ability is probably because of its long history in the
courts of emperors and kings.
The word "Kathak" is derived from the name given to its
practitioners "Kathakars".
Katha meaning story and its practitioners being those who told these
stories. They told stories from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and other
Puranas.

There is a popular saying that ‘Katha kahe so kathak’, (one who tells
a story is a kathak). Etymologically the word kathaka is related to
katha, the art of storytelling. From literary evidence it appears that in
ancient times a class of professional story-tellers recited the epics and
the mythological stories with an added element of abhinaya-acting.
While reciting they sang, danced and acted. The art was handed down
from one generation to the next generation in a hereditary manner as
an oral tradition.

This was prior to the advent of the Mughal dynasty in North India.
With Mughal rule these performing bards were banned from
performing in temples and were made to serve in courts for
entertainment. The Kathakars had to change with history and it is in
the Mughal courts that they developed a style for pure entertainment
of the emperors.

After the power of the Mughal empire declined, these performers

were patronized by kings such as those in Rajasthan and other minor
princely states such as the Nawab of Oudh, etc. The style developed
two major lineages - the Jaipur gharana and the Lucknow gharana.

There are three major schools or gharana of Kathak from which

performers today generally draw their lineage: the gharanas of
Jaipur, Lucknow and Varanasi (born in the courts of the Kachwaha
Rajput kings, the Nawab of Oudh, and Varanasi respectively); there is
also a less prominent (and later) Raigarh gharana which
amalgamated technique from all three preceding gharanas but
became famous for its own distinctive compositions.
Pure Dance (Nritta)

The structure of a conventional Kathak performance tends to follow a

progression in tempo from slow to fast, ending with a dramatic
climax. A short dance composition is known as a tukra, a longer one
as a toda. There are also compositions consisting solely of footwork.
Often the performer will engage in rhythmic play with the time-cycle,
for example splitting it into triplets or quintuplets which will be
marked out on the footwork, so that it is in counterpoint to the rhythm
on the percussion.

All compositions are performed so that the final step and beat of the
composition lands on the 'sam' (pronounced as the English word 'sum'
and meaning even or equal, archaically meaning nil) or first beat of
the time-cycle. Most compositions also have 'bols' (rhythmic words)
which serve both as mnemonics to the composition and whose
recitation also forms an integral part of the performance. This
recitation is known as padhant. Some compositions are aurally very
interesting when presented this way. The bols can be borrowed from
tabla (e.g. dha, ge, na, 'ti' 'na' 'ka' 'dhi na') or can be a dance variety
(ta, thei, tat, ta ta, tigda, digdig, tram theyi and so on).

Often tukras are composed to highlight specific aspects of the dance,

for example gait, or use of corners and diagonals, and so on. A
popular tukra type is the chakkarwala tukra, showcasing the signature
spins of Kathak. Because they are generally executed on the heel,
these differ from ballet's pirouettes (which are properly executed on
the toe or ball of the foot). The spins usually manifest themselves at
the end of the tukra, often in large numbers: five, nine, fifteen, or
more, sequential spins are common. These tukras are popular with
audiences because they are visually exciting and are executed at great
speed. Other compositions can be further particularised as follows:

Music to Kathak is normally provided by tabla and sitar players

1. Vandana, the dancer begins with an invocation to the divinity.

Vandana means prayer, a dance item which is performed as
prayer. Before Mughal influence kathak was mostly performed
 in temple and the form was totally devoted to God. So in those
times vandana was too important and it reserved a large part of
dance. These days performances generally have Vishnu or
Ganesh Vandana, invocation of Ganesha, the Hindu god of
beginnings and good fortune.
2. Thaat, the first composition of a traditional performance; It is
the style of standing. The dancer performs short plays with the
time-cycle, finishing on sam in a statuesque standing (thaat)
pose.
3. Aamad, from the Persian word meaning 'entry'; the first
introduction of spoken rhythmic pattern or bol into the
performance.
4. Salaami, related to Ar. 'salaam' - a salutation to the audience in
the Muslim style.
5. Kavitt, a poem set on a time-cycle; the dancer will perform
movements that echo the meaning of the poem.
6. Paran, a composition using bols from the pakhawaj instead of
only dance or tabla bols.
7. Parmelu or Primalu, a composition using bols reminiscent of
sounds from nature, such as kukuthere (birds), jhijhikita (sound
of ghunghru), tigdadigdig (strut of peacock) etc.
8. Gat, from the word for 'gait' (walk) showing abstract visually
beautiful gaits or scenes from daily life.
9. Lari, a footwork composition consisting of variations on a
theme, and ending in a Tihai.
10. Tihai, usually a footwork composition consisting of a long
set of bols repeated thrice so that the very last bol ends
dramatically on 'sam'.
11. Toda, a dancer performs to the composition of time beats
in a rhythmic cycle, ending with Tehai and arriving on the 'sam',
a concluding beat.

Expressive Dance (Nritya)

Aside from the traditional expressive or abhinaya pieces performed to

a bhajan, ghazal or thumri, Kathak also possesses a particular
performance style of expressional pieces called bhaav bataanaa (lit.
'to show bhaav or 'feeling'). It is a mode where abhinaya dominates,
and arose in the Mughal court. It is more suited to the mehfil or the
darbaar environment, because of the proximity of the performer to
the audience, who can more easily see the nuances of the dancer's
facial expression. Consequently, it translates to the modern
proscenium stage with difficulty. A thumri is sung, and once the
mood is set, a line from the thumri is interpreted with facial abhinaya
and hand movements while seated. This continues for an indefinite
period, limited only by the dancer's interpretative abilities. For
example, Shambhu Maharaj is claimed to have interpreted a single
line in many different ways for hours. All the Maharaj family
(Acchan Maharaj, Lachhu Maharaj, Shambhu Maharaj and Achhan
Maharaj's son Birju Maharaj) have found much fame for the
naturalness and innovativeness of their abhinaya.

Ghunghru

Ghunghru or ghunghroo are the small bells the dancer ties around his
or her ankles. The Kathak bells are different from those of other
Indian dance styles, as they are not affixed to a pad or strip of leather,
but rather are individually woven along a thick string. The usual
number of bells is 100 on each ankle, although for the initial stages of
learning or for children, 25 and 50 belled strings are widely available
to allow the dancer to get used to them.

There is a more or less accepted upper ceiling of 150 bells on each

ankle. Greater figures than this tend to involve the topmost circle of
bells being tied further and further up a dancer's calf. This is generally
regarded as unsuitable, because it is at some distance from the point
of impact, giving rise to the upper levels of bells being prone to
delayed sounding given the intervening space and amount of leg.
Greater numbers are also unnecessarily difficult to control since they
are more likely to sound at unwanted moments, being affected by the
movement of the whole of the lower leg, rather than just the ankle.
KATHAK EXPONENTS
Pandit Birju Maharaj

The most eminent Kathak dancer of recent

times is Pandit Birju Maharaj. He is the only
son and disciple of Shri Achyan Maharaj and
is a competent inheritor of the Lucknow
Gharana. Birju Maharaj is a very talented and
dignified personality. He is a born artist.

Born in the family of hereditary dancers,

Birju Maharaj is the torch bearer of the
famous family, Kalka-Bindadin Gharana of
Lucknow, which has been serving the art of
Kathak dance through centuries together. Not
only in India, he is familiarly known abroad,
nearly all over the world.

He is a wonderful singer having command

over, Thumri, Dadra, Bhajan and
Ghazals and is also superb drummer, playing nearly all drums with
ease and precision. He has given a new dimension to Kathak, by
experimenting this technique in the application of dance-dramas,
which has become very successful medium for mass propagation. As
a choreographer he is the finest in the country today. His bold and
intellectual compositions in traditional themes are brilliant, whereas
his contemporary works are also refreshing in concept, crisp and
entertaining.

He directed and composed music and sung playback for two classical
dance sequences in the film, 'The Chess Players' directed by Satyajit
Ray. A measure of his genius is the fact that at the age of 28 years, he
received the Sangeet Natak Akademy Award. In 1986, he received
the prestigious 'Padma Bibhushan' tittle from the goverment of India.
He also received the 'Kalidas' award. He is also a recipient of 'Nehru
Fellowship' in the name of India's first Prime Minister Pandit
Jawaharlal Nehru. He is an instituition in himself. Currently, he is the
chief faculty at Delhi's Kathak Kendra.

Sitara Devi

Sitara Devi is among the great dancers of modern India. Born in

Calcutta, she was trained in Kathak by her father Shri Sukhdev
Maharaj Misra and by masters of Lucknow gharana including
Achhan Maharaj, Lachhu Maharaj and Shambu Maharaj. She has
combined the traditions of Banaras and Lucknow in her
performance of Kathak.

Shovana Narayan (Padmashri)

An exquisite diamond of her art style, intense and passionate,

elegant yet vibrant, effortlessly spanning centuries of Kathak
heritage as she does her dance space, Shovana Narayan is sheer
poetry and sublime joy transcending boundaries. She is not only
India’s most celebrated Kathak Guru and Maestro of the present age
but she has also become a living legend who has blazed a trail in
Kathak, re-defining the ethos and vocabulary of Kathak bestowing it
with dignity and enriching it with a deeper and wider canvas of
expression and dimensions. Every fibre of her body lives and
breathes dance. Her performances are intimate yet pristine. A
consummate artiste and choreographer, a revered guru to her
disciples and an intellectual, she combines artistry with keen
observation and humanism.
internationally known Indian and western dancers and musicians.
She has performed before several Heads of States and Governments
all over the world.

Malabika Mitra

A front-ranking Kathak dancer, Malabika Mitra received her initial

training from Pandit Ramgopal Mishra of Jaipur Gharana. Later she
continued her training under Vijay Shankar and Om Prakash
Maharaj. Malabika Mitra has grown into a performer of notable
accomplishment with a fine grasp of the technical intricacies of
Kathak as well as abhinaya. Her performance shows an assimilation
of the features of the different schools of Kathak in which she has
been trained.

Varanasi's Soni Chaurasia is only 3 hours away from breaking the world record.
She is performing marathon Kathak, and has been dancing for the last 121 hours
(as we write this). The last world record was created in 2013 by Hemlatha from
Kerala. She performed Mohiniattam for 123 hours and 15 minutes, and now
Varanasi's Soni is all set to break this record. Soni's coach Rajesh Dogra said,
"Soni has been dancing for 119 hours and we hope she will break the record
soon. She is expected to finish 124 hours at 9:21 pm. After which she will
decide if she wants to continue with dancing or not. Dogra added that Soni
hopes to see PM Modi sitting in the audience when she achieves this feat.