Know Your Classical Dances

Know Your Classical Dances: Manipuri Raas Leela, and its exploration of love — both romantic and spiritual

Not only does the dance form set out to showcase Krishna in his various colours, but also explores the anxieties and predicaments of the gopis through its study of the nayika, or the heroine and her quest to unite with her prana sakha [soulmate].

Know Your Classical Dances: Locating Kuchipudi’s roots and transformations in traditions of dance-drama

In each recital, Kuchipudi has retained at its core the flavours of the sensual, romantic, and erotic shringara rasa that have shaped its oldest renditions.

Know Your Classical Dances: Mohiniyattam, once thrust into obscurity during British rule, revived in early 20th century

From being categorised as a dance of the vaishya or the prostitute to receiving recognition as a prolific art form and a codification into the realm of the ‘classical,’ Mohiniyattam has perhaps been one of the few dance styles to have undergone such humongous shifts through history.

Know Your Classical Dances: How Kathak has historically served as a medium of storytelling that cuts across classes

Throughout history, quite unlike most classical art forms, Kathak has seldom been performed as an offering to a deity, instead from its earliest stages, it has been a recital directed at an audience comprising its patrons as well as the common people.