A Panorama of Indian Dances

The dancing has come down to us in two major forms. One of these is close to the nature & life, this form is called 'Tribal' or 'Folk'. The other form is 'Classical'. The 'Tribal' or 'Folk' dancing belong to the people as a whole, where as 'Classical' dancing is for the initiated and for displaying. Some of the topics discussed in the present book are: Birth of Arts and Development, Fine Arts, Dance and ancient Hindu society, Indian Dance and Sculpture, Indian Dance and Painting, Indian dance and Music, Musical Instruments, Indian Dance and Literature, Indian Dance and Drama, Historical development of Indian classical Dances, Bharata-natya, Kathakali, Kathak, Manipuri, Kuchipudi, Bhagavata Mela, Odissi, Mohini Attam, Technical terms of Bharata Natya, Standing Poses, Qualities of a male Dancer, Qualities of a female Dancer, Tala and their classification, Psycho logy of Rhythm in Dance, Folk dances of- Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Bengal, Assam, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Kashmir, Creation of Indian Art and Beauty in Indian Art, Dances in Modern Times, Tradition and Innovation, Performing Arts in Twenty first Century, Conclusion and References. This book is virtually an encyclopaedia of Indian dances.

U.S. Krishna Rao and U.K. Chandrabhaga Devi have given over one thousand five hundred dance recitals all over India and abroad. They have also lectured-demons-trated more than eight hundred times in India and abroad giving an insight into the beauty of Indian dance. They have trained more than 300 students in Bharatanatyam. At present they are training many Indian and foreign students in Bharata-natyam at their studio Maha Maya Bangalore.

In the year 1978-79, we had a pleasant surprise when the Director of Prasaranga, Bangalore University, requested us to write a Text Book on Indian Dances in Kannada language, for the students of Dance in the Colleges. We had all along keenly felt the need for a Text Book on Dance as a subject for study. Of course there are many Treatises and Books on Dance such as Natya Shashtra, Abhinaya Darpana, Lasya Ranjana etc in many languages. Hence, when the call came to us for writing a Text Book on Indian Dances, we were extremely happy. We have worked in this field for more than fifty years now and as such we were inspired to undertake such an assignment

The Text Book "NRITYA KALE" in Kannada was published by the Bangalore University in the year 1980. The Book was so popular that all the copies were sold out within a couple of years. Since 1982, there has been a clamour for the Translation of this Book into English for an International Market so that it will be useful for all students of Dance all over the world. With this idea in view, we have translated this "NRITYA KALE" into English and named it as "A PANORAMA OF INDIAN DANCES". It is well-known among artists that, in the field of Art, there are always differences of opinion and it should be so, because, without such differences, there can be no progress in Art. It is quite likely that in a pioneering attempt like this, there may be some shortcomings and controversies and as such we will be grateful to the dance teachers and dancers if they bring them to our notice. In this Book, where there are many topics, there may be some repetitions; but these are unavoidable. The technical terms in this Text Book are chosen from three Treatises (a) Bharata's Natya Shashtra (b) Nandikeshwara'sAbhinaya Darpana and (c)Simha Bhupala's Lasya Ranjana.

This Book is a guidance for not only the students of Dance in Colleges, but also to the upcoming dancers and dance enthusiasts. We hope the future students and Teachers will be benefitted by this Book and if so, we are greatly rewarded.

The English Version was ready for publication in 1985. After waiting for many years for its publication, the Indian Books Centre, has readily agreed to publish this book now and we are ever grateful to the Indian Books Centre for bringing this Book to light.