Bharata Natyam

Bharata Natyam, one of the oldest dance styles of India. It has its roots in the classical dance tradition of Tamil Nādu in southern India that was performed regularly as part of religious rituals, court ceremonies, weddings, and other important social occasions.

Bharata natyam is performed by a female soloist who portrays different characters in a story she interprets. She draws from Indian mythology, the Sanskrit epic the Ramayana, the Puranas (ancient stories), and personal experience in creating her dance. The dancer uses a language of hand gestures (hastas) to interpret her song. The text is set within a rhythmic framework (talam) and melodic mode (ragam) that correspond to and relate the piece's mood (bhava). The dancer counts, claps, and waves to the talam in order to keep her movement synchronous. A recital of this style performed today consists of the presentation of a number of separate items either emphasizing nritta (pure dance) or abhinaya (dramatic expression). The opening alarippu, or invocation to the gods, is followed by a jatiswaram, or dance patterns based on musical compositions that reveal the geometry of the form. A shabdam introduces mime as the dancer interprets the lyrics of devotional songs through emotional expression of the face and body. The high point of any performance is the varnam, which is an opportunity for the dancer to display her virtuosity. The recital concludes with a thillana, in which intricate dance sequences are performed to complicated rhythmic patterns.

Bharata natyam originated in the 9th and 10th centuries ad, when many new temples were established in southern India, and the class of musicians and dancers called devadasis (servants of the gods) held high status, encouraged by public funds to pursue their arts. This early form of religious dance was revitalized in the early 19th century by the Tanjore Quartet, a group of four brothers who organized all basic dance movements into a systematic series of progressive lessons. They also composed music specifically for the dance. During the British rule of India (1858-1947), colonial overseers confused classical Indian dance with the nautch dance, which was performed by prostitutes, and forbade them both as immoral. In the early 20th century, Rukmini Devi, a member of an influential Brahmin family, studied and performed the dance, rendering it more respectable in the eyes of the British. In 1936 Devi founded the Kaleshetra International Arts Center in Tiruvanmiyur, Madras, which later became the principal academy for classical dance. In 1925 classical dancer Balasaraswati began her career, encouraging the public's reevaluation of what was to become known as bharata natyam.

After gaining independence from Britain in 1947, many Indians looked to their own cultural roots in dance and music. At this time the dance which had been known by various names, such as sadir,dasi-attam, and adal, became bharata natyam (the dance of Bharata, a 6th-century scholar who wrote the first Indian treatise on dance and drama). Now, bharata natyam has become an accepted part of arts education in India and can be studied throughout the West.