Kantara’s Buta Kola an Ancient Dance Forms of India
India is a country known for its rich cultural heritage. India is also well known for its diversification. In those cultures, Indian dance is one of the most revered identities of our culture. Every state of India has its unique dance form. Whether it is classical dance or folklore, each and everything has its importance and specialty.
In recent times, we witnessed one such movie named “Kantara” where the main theme of the story is based on the ancient dance form known as “Buta Kola.” There are many more such dance forms in every corner of India. Let’s have a glance at some of these dance forms in today’s article.
The classical dance form originated from Natya Shastra. Mainly there are 8 dance forms in India namely Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Manipuri, Mohiniyattam, Kuchipudi, Kathakali, and Sattriya. These classical ancient dance forms of India are also known as Shastriya Nritya. The word Shastriya means classical and Nrityam means the art of dancing. These ancient Indian dance forms express 9 basic technicalities such as
- Shringar: Love
- Hasya: Humorous
- Adbhoot: Wonder
- Karuna: Sorrow
- Raudra: Anger
- Bhayanak: Fear
- Veer: Heroism
- Bibhats: Disgust
- Shanta: Patience
Some ancient dance forms of India
Bharatanatyam
The Bharatanatyam dance form originated in Tamil Nadu. Earlier, it is called Sadhir Attam. Bharatanatyam is a temple dance that tells stories from various scriptures. There is a particular origin date for Bharatanatyam. Archeologists estimate the first compilation of the text to be between 200 BCE and 200 CE. The Bharatanatyam style was also mentioned in Manimegali as well as Silappatikaram which was written in the 6th and 2nd centuries.
Kuchipudi
Kuchipudi is the famous dance form after Bharatanatyam. It originated from the Kuchipudi village in the Krishna district in Andhra Pradesh. Similar to other dances like Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi is also a temple dance. The dance starts with a religious act followed by water sprinkling later lighting incense and finally invoking god’s blessings. The important and main thing about Kuchipudi is that it is a magnificent dance form that comprises 28 hand mudras. This is a very ancient dance form of India. Bharata Muni described this dance as the graceful dance in Natya Shastra and often called Kaishiki vritti.
Did you know?
Bharatanatyam is the oldest dance form in India and Kuchipudi is considered the toughest dance form in India.
Kathak
The dance form Kathak originated in Uttar Pradesh. This dance is a mix of story narration and worshipping deities. Hand gestures, body poses, eye movements, and grace combine to make Kathak a graceful sight. A Kathak dancer starts the dance by offering respect to the guru and praying to receive god’s blessings. Then the dancer starts dancing and the music that accompanies uses different classical instruments like Sarangi Seeta, Manjira, Tabla, Harmonium, etc.
Odissi
The dance form Odissi originated in Odisha. Similar to Bharatanatyam, Odissi is also a temple dance form. Earlier it was performed at temples in Odisha later it took to stage performances. The main theme of the dance form is Lord Jagannath’s worship and the costumes are symbolic of a message of Hindu mythology. There are some other themes in Odissi that are inspired by the sun god, Vaishnavism, Shakti as well as Lord Shiva. The origin of Odissi was tracked back to the 2nd century.
Manipuri
The dance form Manipuri originated from Manipur. The dance form is based on the ‘Raasaleela’ trope where Radha and Lord Krishna share a dance. Desired inspiration from Lord Krishna, Manipuri is considered a religious form. This dance combines singing as well as dancing. In general, it was performed during festivals and celebrations like weddings.
The female dancer dresses as a Manipuri bride whereas the male dancer wears a dhoti. Manipuri dancers consider them as ‘Gandharvas’ mentioned in the Vedic texts.
Mohiniyattam
Mohiniyattam originated in Kerala. The name is a combination of two words Mohini and Attam meaning the graceful body movements of a woman. The literal translation of Mohinyattam is a dance of the enchantress. Therefore, people regard Mohiniyattam as a highly graceful dance form performed by a woman.
The main theme of this dance is devotion to God. Mudras or hand gestures are more important in this dance form. The dancers adorn a white saree with a golden brocade, which is a highlight of the dance.
Kathakali
Kathakali also originated in Kerala in the 17th century. It is a mix of devotion, drama, music as well as dance. The main highlight of this dance form is the makeup of the dancer. Each color of makeup has its unique meaning. The ‘Pacha’ or green color represents a noble character. While ‘Kathi’ and ‘Kari’ means a villain or a demon. In addition to that, there are also three types of beards that are a part of the makeup.
Sattriya
Sattriya originated from Assam. There are many forms of Sattriya such as Mati Akhara, Krishna Nritya, Jhumura, Gopi Prabesh, Nadubhangi, Chali, Gosain Prabesh, etc. The origin of the Sattriya traces back to ancient India, as depicted by copper plate inscriptions as well as sculptures.
In the end, not only these 8 dance forms are there in India. But there are also many folk dances such as Kolattam, Bhamakalapam, Bihu, Garba, Yakshagana, Bhangra, etc are there in every part of India. Each of these dances forms some individual importance.
Originally published at https://historicalhuman.blogspot.com.
