Sarita Wariyer Teacher with Vaibhav M Warrier Personal Fitness Trainer ERPS CERTIFIED

BHARATANATYAM

BHARATANATYAM

tta : The emphasis is on pure dance movements, creating patterns in space and time, mostly along straight lines, triangles, circles and semicircles; without any specific intention of projecting any emotion.

Nritya: Combination of Rhythm with Expression. The dancer conveys the meanings of a lyrical passage set to music, through stylised hand gestures, facial expressions and bodily movements.

Natya: Dramatic Element. Performing for a theme like Ramayana, Mahabharata etc.

HISTORY OF BHARATNATYAM –

Bharata Natyam is one of the oldest dance forms of India. It was nurtured in the temples and courts of southern India since ancient times.

Later it was codified and documented as a performing art in the 19th century by four brothers known as the Tanjore Quartet whose musical compositions for dance form the bulk of the Bharata Natyam repertoire even today.

The art was handed down as a living tradition from generation to generation under the Devadasi system under which women were dedicated to temples to serve the deity as dancers and musicians forming part of the elaborate rituals.

These highly talented artists and the male gurus (nattuvanars) were the sole repository of the art until the early 20th century when a renewal of interest in India’s cultural heritage prompted the educated elite to discover its beauty.