Bharatanatyam

Courtesy, film songs and the manner dancers are shown in skimpy & provoking attire, the dance form of Bharatnatyam is wrongly perceived by most of the population who are unaware of the true form of this dance. In the name of attempting to modernize the original dance form is made lost.

Bharata-natyam is one of the India’s oldest dance forms. It is not just a dance but a devotional act. Bharata Natyam is a medium of Bhakti to reach the Almighty. Bharata Natyam is music in visual form. This dance originated from the Natya Shastra written by Bharata, a sage who lived long ago (400 BCE - 200 BCE). It is, at times, given an etymology as: Bha for Bhava or abhinaya (expression), Ra for raga (melody), and Ta for tala (rhythm).

One would observe the sculptures in Hindu temples resemble the dance postures of Bharata Natyam. In a Hindu temple, the deity is the chief guest. Hence, He has to be offered services named Shodasha Upachara "sixteen hospitalities” that pleases Him. Music & Dance are among the sixteen hospitalities. So, in the past, many Hindu temples maintained complements of trained musicians and dancers.

The movements of a Bharatanatyam dancer resemble the movements of a dancing flame. So, Bharatanatyam is considered to be a fire-dance — the mystic manifestation of fire element in the human body. It is one of the five major styles, one for each element that includes Odissi (element of water) and Mohiniattam (element of air).

In olden days, this dance was performed only by females and only inside the temples as it was revered as a service to the deity. These dancers were called Devadasis. A devadasi had to satisfy own soul. She has to dance unwatched and offer herself or surrender to the Lord. The dance was more a meditation. Devadasis were accompanied by artists who would sing and play instruments. They were well versed in Sanskrit & other languages so they can interpret compositions they perform. Devadasis lost their place in the society, courtesy changed morals.

Later, the kings invited these devadasis to perform in their courts. Dance vacated temples and came out losing its sanctity. They were termed as Rajanartakis. The accompanying artistes too were provided shelter along these dancers. Thus a new category of dancers were formed. It’s a different story that these rajanartakis gradually became royal concubines.

Bharatanatyam is a solo dance, with two aspects, lasya, the graceful feminine lines & movements, and tandava, masculine aspect. The Natya Shastra-based dance styles were sacred ceremonies conceived in order to spiritually elevate the spectators. However, when it entered the royal courts, it was performed to entertain others rather than satisfying one’s soul. Thus, the theme of the recitals and the techniques got changed.

With the invasion of Muslim rulers, Bharatanatyam lost its place. In the first half of the 19th century the dance tradition was revitalized by the famous four brothers known as the Tanjavur Quartet (Chinniah, Sivanandam, Ponniah & Vadivelu). By coordinating their diverse talents, they organized all the basic dance movements into a progressive series of lessons (adavu). Each adavu (basic unit of motion) was taught in systematic order and then combined with others to produce choreographed sequences based upon the rhythmic contour of a musical composition. In addition, the brothers composed music specifically for the dance. This can be termed as one of the most innovative periods in the Indian dance history.

Bharatanatyam comprises of three basic elements Nritta, Nritya and Natya.
¨ Nritta: Rhythmic Element. Interprets the language of rhythm with the help of body movements
¨ Nritya: Combination of Rhythm with Expression. Conveys poetic meaning with the help of expressions, rhythmic gestures and postures. eg. Varna, Shabda, Pada etc.
¨ Natya: Dramatic Element. Performing for a theme like Ramayana, Mahabharata etc.

Nritta can be divided into Chari, Karana, Angahara and Mandala. Movement of one leg is called Chari. Movement of both the legs is Karana. 3 Karanas make a Khanda. 3 to 4 Khandas make a Mandala. 4 to 9 Karanas make 1 Angahara. 108 Karanas and 32 Angaharas are defined in Natyashastra. The 13 Nritta Hastas are used to perform nritta. The rhythmic body movements along with hand gestures are called Adavus. Number of adavus constitutes a Jati. Jati will generally end with a Teermana.

There are varieties of Adavus like Tattadavu, Mettadavu, Natadavu, Kattadavu, Kudittamettadavu, Maiadavu, Mandiadavu, Jati, Nadai, Ardi. There are 12 aduvas in each of the above explained. Hence 120 aduvus exist in total though only 70 ~ 80 are in practice. Adavus are often confused with the 108 Karanas that are carved in the Chidambaram Temple.

The body is divided into three parts Anga, Pratyanga, Upanga. When all Angas (main body parts) coordinate (along with pratyanga and upaanga) the artist is said to have Angashudhi. Anga means body parts and shudhi means perfect. Every dancer should try to achieve this perfection. The irony is, today’s parents start questioning the date of Arangetram right from the day they enroll their wards to learn Bharatanatyam. The Natyashastra, which talks about all aspects of Bharatanatyam, quotes shlokas to perform all the above movements.

The expressions which are shown to express poetic meanings are Abinaya. Here the emphasis is more on facial expressions than rhythmic movements. The Abinaya is divided as Angikabhinaya, Vachikabhinaya, Aharyabhinaya, Satvikabhinaya.
Angikabhinaya: Expressing the meanings of lyrics using the body parts like Head, Hands, and Legs etc. is Angikabhinaya.
Vachikabhinaya: Expressing the story using narrations in the dance drama is Vachikabhinaya. Aharyabhinaya: Imitating the costumes, in a dance comes under Aharyabhinaya
Satvikabhinaya: Showing the Bhava (moods) come under Satvikabhinaya.

There are nine primary emotions, Sthayibhavas. It is also termed as Rasa (Mood). Shringara – Love, Hasya – Mirth, Veera – Valor, Roudra – Anger, Bhayanaka – Terror, Bheebatsa – Disgust, Adbhuta – Wonder, Karuna – Compassion, Shanta – Tranquility. Vatsalya(Parental fondling) rasa is also sometimes included as one of the stayibhava. Vibhava (cause of emotion), Anubhava (effect of emotion) and Sanchari bhava (subordinate emotions) constitute the state of rasa.

The styles of Pandanallur, Tanjavur, Vazhuvoor, Mysore, Kancheepuram were based on rajdasi art whereas the styles of Melattur and Balasaraswati are different. The contributions of E. Krishna Iyer, Rukmini Arundale, Balasaraswati cannot be ignored in the 20th century to this art form.

Balasaraswati once said that "the effort to purify Bharatanatyam through the introduction of novel ideas is like putting a gloss on burnished gold or painting the lotus". Let there be new concepts but not change the dance form. Most of the contemporary choreographers and dancers may use some of the formal Bharatanatyam technique to stage ballets on various themes such as nationalism, unity of religions, the animal rights activism, etc. Most recently, some dancers managed to draw their divine inspiration even from Condom Songs.

Although Bharatanatyam has gone through various changes, it still has its roots deep into the religious & rich mythological heritage of India. The true Bharatanatyam, should not be a vulgar form of entertainment but a sacred ritual that is supposed to bring the rasanubhava (spiritual enlistment) to the rasika (audience) and the dancer. Contemporary Bharatanatyam is rarely practiced as Natya Yoga, a sacred tradition of meditation, except by a few orthodox schools.