Table Of ContentBHARATA NATYAM
Bharata atyam, the most popular classical
Indian dance-form, has received universal
approbation as one of the subtlest expressions of
Indian culture. Its intimate connection with the
temple, as a ritualistic art, mirroring the
imperceptible feelings of a devotee reflects the
inwardness of Hindu culture.
Its amazing inner resilience ha once again
come to the fore. And thanks to some of the great
gurus and performing artistes, a few dedicated
visionaries, and pioneers, it has, after its initial
revival some six decades ago, gained
unprecedented popularity.
One of the most beautiful, subtle, sophisticated,
and graceful dance-forms in the world, Bharata
atyam is performed according to the most
deliiJte nuances of a musical piece, or a poem,
through the vehicle of a body. Reflecting the
principles laid down in the Natyasbastra treatises,
it has survived in India in all its variegated
splendour of the form and moods which it has
gathered unto itself throughout the centuries.
The present revised third edition captures the
rhythms and beauty of an integral art in a visually
exciting and fascinating manner. Written by
Dr Sunil Kothari, dance scholar, historian, and
critic, it has important contributions from pioneers
like Rukmini Devi and Professor P. Sambamurthy.
Dr Mulk Raj Anand in hi evocative words stresses
the values of this inheritance for today and the
hope for refulgence of the ecstasy of dance in our
mundane world. Dancer and research scholar
Dr Padma Subrahmanyam has contributed an
essay on dance notation of the basic dance units
- the adavus - on the lines of staff notation of
Western music. Dr Sunil Kothari's fieldwork and
researches in the dance-drama-forms complete the
total picture of Bharata atyam as een in its
varied aspects. This volume ends with an
overview of the legendary and present-day
exponents of Bharata atyam.
Photographer such a ubodhchandra, David
May, Lance Dane, Avina h Pasricha, Dasharath
Patel, S. Anwar, V. K. Rajamani, and others, have
captured the many-splendoured beauty of Bharata
Natyam in the third eye of their camera.
Front Cover:
Malavika San.tkkai: in an arresting po e of nrilla, pi.Ire
dance.
Photograph: S. Anwar.
Back Cover:
Alarmel Valli: in an abhinaya sequence, a nayika
describing the grandeur of the abode of Lord Shiva, the
temple, Ti/lai.
Photograph: Avinash Pasricha.
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Marg Publications gratefully acknowledges
the financial support of the Tata Electric Companies
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BHARATA NATYAM
by Sunil Kothari
with contributions from
Mulk Raj Anand, Rukmini Devi, Padma Subrahmanyam, and P. Sambamurthy
General Editor
PRATAPADITYA PAL
Text Editor
SHER AZ VASU IA
Editorial Executive
ARNAVAZ K. BHANSALI
Design Editor
SUBRATA BHOWMICK
Designer
AJU HIRANI
Production Executive
GAUTAM V. JADHAV
Design and Production Assistant
VIDYADHAR R. SA\Y/A T
first Published: 1979
Reprinted: 1982
Revised Edition: 1997
Reprinted: 2000
ISBN: 81-85026-36-X
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 97-90035(
Marg is a registered trademark of Marg Publications.
Copyright Marg Publications, 2000
All rights reserved.
No pan of this publication may be reproduced, stored. adapted, or transmined, in any fonn or by any means.
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This edition may be exponed from India only by the publishers, Marg Publications. and by their authorized
distributors and this constitutes a condition of its initial sale and its subsequent sales.
Published by J.J. Bhabha for Marg Publications on behalf of the National Centre for the Performing Ans at
24, Homi Mody Street, Mumbai 400 001.
Colour processing by Khurshed Poonawala at Coman Lithographers Limited, Mumbai 400 025.
Black and white processing by Tata Donnelley Limited, Mumbai 400 025.
Printed by A. S. Vadiwala at Tata Donnelley Limited, Mumbai 400 025, India.
Captions to preliminary pages:
Pages 2-3 Page 11
Sona/ Mansingh: rhythm in Alarmel Valli: in a languorous pose.
movement.
Page 12
Pages 4-5 Ma/avika Sarukkai: as
Sequence from Lilavat1~ Gajasamhara, Shiva destroying the
choreographed by Chandralekha. elephant.
Pages 14-15
Page 10 Page 13 Sequence from l'a11tm. Da11ce
Lee/a Samson: in a nritta, pure Urmila Sathyanaraya11a11: as Lord Diagrams. rhoreographed by
dance pose Shiva. Chandralekha.
CONTENTS
8 Preface
16 In Praise of Bharata Natyam
MULK RAJ A A D
24 Spiritual Background
RUKMI I DEVI
28 History
Roots, Growth, and Revival
36 Nritta
.1.:.J.•
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44 Dance Notation of Adavus
Shan/a Rao: drawing by the PADMA SUBRAHMANYAM
late Dr Homi Bhabha in
1950.
Nritya:
78 Hastas
82 Abhinaya
92 Margam
Repertoire: Alarippu to Tillana
Natya:
104 Bhagavata Mela Nataka
120 Kuravanji Dance .. Drama
132 Musical Content
P. SAMBAMURTHY
136 Mysore School of Bharata Natyam
144 Guruparampara
162 Exponents
234 Index
235 Photo Credits
236 Acknowledgements
Preface
Even after its reprint in 1982, this book has consistently stayed in demand these past fifteen y<.:ars.
Arguably one of the most popular dance-forms, Bharata atyam has innumerabl<.: votaries and the past
decade has witnessed an explosion in the quantum of its practitioners.
Today the Bharata atyam performing arena is crowded and the form ha gained unprecedented global
popularity. This has led to subtle shifts in meanings and contexts and a \\'hole new sociology of the fom1
is needed to grasp the complexity of its specificities. It also poses special problems in producing this
revised edition.
Being compelled to retain the basic body of the text and its original format it was not possible to
introduce additional chapters to accommodate all the dramatic changes. innovations. and <.:xplorations in
the form. As this Preface tries to indicate, that would need an entirely fresh exercise. 11<.:nce. \\'hile rc,·ising
this book, we have retained the basic text of the chapters as it is in the original. with minor changes -
with a new chapter on repertoire based on E. Krishna lycr's article. and the updating of the last t\\'O
chapters - Guruparampara and Exponents (originally titled Contemporaries).
Being a dynamic art, dance cannot remain stagnant. 13harata Natyam indeed has undergone a change.
Besides the sheer number of its practitioners, what is remarkable has been the consistent trend, in recent
times, to adapt it to contemporary sensibilities. Of course. the thematic content of a nayika ,,·aiting
eternally for her Lord has acquired a deja vu quality. and it has been questioned by somc danccrs \Yho are
sensitive to the hiatus between their own lives and what they perform on stage. While the gifted danccr
can still evoke bhakti or spirituality, the rapid shift in the class of the performers has led to an ine,·itable
shift in the thematic content of their dance too.
As a classical art, Bharata atyam in its solo format will continue to co-exist \\'ith innovative group
work. Besides the assembly-line production of dancers, and the problems of the transition of performers
from the hereditary class to the middle class, the rampant commercialization of the context too has affected
the dance sequence. In its solo avatar, the form has certainly thrown up exceptionally gifted dancers. 13ut
now the danger signals are evident. The mindlessness and mediocrity accompanying quantification, and
promotion in the name of supporting the art - without the necessary checks and balances, have caused
havoc. It has, for example, led to the factory syndrome of a conveyor-belt production of dancers. followed
by pre-fabricated arangetrams, mechanical presenrations, and loss of feeling. In the urban centres
performances do not attract crowds and audiences are dwindling except for special events. And yet. one
encounters a false hype and euphoria during, say. a December festi\'al season in Madras.
In such a scenario dancers with imagination and ability to reflect upon our present exi tential crisi - have
deviated from the traditional margam repertoire. The narrative traditions in our rnlture co-exist with
traditions of abstraction. Some dancers like Chandralekha have explored this area \Yith more success,
moving away from the nayaka-nayika theme. Also following Chandralekha's choreographic work A11gika.
there has been a remarkable change in the quality of the repertoire of Bharata Natyam with inputs from
other physical traditions like Kalarippayatt11, the martial arts of Kerala. and yoga. These inputs have
extended the vocabulary of Bharata Natyam. Innovations, experimentations, and explorations have been
undertaken by a few dancers. Interaction with other arts. including the dance and music of other cultures.
and the visual media have changed the character of 13harata Natyam in the hands of some avant-garde
choreographers.
These new directions in Indian dance have given Bharata Natyam a different profile. The fundamental
concepts of the Natyasbastra have been re-examined, and the energizing principles have been explored. A
corrective to the imbalanced approach has been sought out by dancers who are concerned about dance.
The origins of dance and the issue of "invented tradition" raised by critics like Rustom Bhanicha in
Cbandralekba - Woman/Dance/Resistance (HarperCollins. 1995: Chapter 2 "Bharata Natyam - an
nJe
·Invention. of Tradition?") and Avanth i Meduri in Vatio11. \\'loman. Representatio11: Sutured Histo1y of the
Devadasi and her Dance: 1856-1960 (thesis submitted to Ne,,· York University, January 1996), to mention
only two studies, throw considerable light on the .. pre-history" of Bharata Naryam. Anne-Marie Gaston·s
