BharathaNatyam History, Decline & Revival PDF

BharathaNatyam BharathaNatyam is a Indian classical dance- form that originated in the temples of Tamil Nadu. This dance form denotes various 19th- and 20th-century reconstructions of Sadir, the art of temple dancers called Devadasis. It was described in the treatise Natya Shastra by Bharata...

BharathaNatyam BharathaNatyam is a Indian classical dance- form that originated in the temples of Tamil Nadu. This dance form denotes various 19th- and 20th-century reconstructions of Sadir, the art of temple dancers called Devadasis. It was described in the treatise Natya Shastra by Bharata around the beginning of the common era. BharataNatyam is known for its grace, purity, tenderness, and sculpturesque poses. Lord Shiva is considered the God of this dance form. Today, it is one of the most popular and widely performed dance styles and is practiced by male and female dancers all over the world. Etymology The name Bharatha Natyam is of relatively recent origin when performers like Rukmini Devi revived the dance in the 20th century. The original names for this dance were Sadir, Chinnamelam and most commonly Dasi Attam. A possible origin of the name is from Bharata Muni, who wrote the Natya Shastra. A popular folk etymology holds that "Bhavam" means expression and "ragam" meaning music, "thalam" meaning rhythm and natayam meaning dance. Dance tradition Surviving texts of the golden age of Tamil literature and poetry known during the Sangam Age such as the Tolkappiyam, as well as the later Silappadikaram, testify to a variety of dance traditions which flourished in these times. The latter work is of particular importance, since one of its main characters, the courtesan Madhavi, is a highly accomplished dancer. The Silappadikaram is a mine of information of ancient Tamil culture and society, in which the arts of music and dance were highly developed and played a major role. In ancient times it was performed as dasiattam by mandira (Hindu temple) Devadasis. Many of the ancient sculptures in Hindu temples are based on Bharata Natyam dance postures karanas. In fact, it is the celestial dancers, apsaras, who are depicted in many scriptures dancing the heavenly version of what is known on earth as Bharata Natyam. In the most essential sense, a Hindu deity is a revered royal guest in his temple/abode, to be offered the "sixteen hospitalities" - among which are music and dance, pleasing to the senses. Thus, many Hindu temples traditionally maintained complements of trained musicians and dancers, as did Indian rulers. In this Kali Yuga, the center of most arts in India is Bhakti (devotion) and therefore, Bharata Natyam as a dance form and carnatic music set to it are deeply grounded in Bhakti. Bharata Natyam, it is said, is the embodiment of music in visual form, a ceremony, and an act of devotion. Dance and music are inseparable forms; only with Sangeetam (words or syllables set to raga or melody) can dance be conceptualized. Bharata Natyam has three distinct elements to it: Nritta (rhythmic dance movements), Nritya (expressive), and Natya (combination of Nritta and Nritya / mime, or dance with a dramatic aspect).  Tamil Nadu, especially Tanjore, has always been the seat and center of learning and culture. It was the famous quartet of Chinnayya, Ponniah, Sivanandam and Vadivelu of the Tanjore Court during the Maratha King Saraboji’s time (1798–1824) which made a rich contribution to music and BharathaNatyam and also completed the process of re-editing the BharathaNatyam programme into its present shape with its various forms like the Alarippu, Jathiswaram, Sabdham, Varnam, Tillana etc. The descendants of these four brothers formed the original stock of Nattuvanars or dance teachers of BharathaNatyam in Tanjore. Essential ideas BharathaNatyam is considered to be a fire-dance — the mystic manifestation of the metaphysical element of fire in the human body. It is one of the five major Classical forms (one for each element) that include Odissi (element of water), Kuchipudi (element of earth), Mohiniattam (element of air) and Kathakali (element of sky or ether). The movements of an authentic BharathaNatyam dancer resemble the movements of a dancing flame. Contemporary BharathaNatyam is rarely practiced as Natya Yoga, a sacred meditational tradition, except by a few orthodox schools. BharathaNatyam is a solo dance, with two aspects, lasya, the graceful feminine lines and movements, and tandava, (the dance of Shiva), masculine aspect, which is identical to the Yin and Yang in the Chinese culture. In most solo performances, BharathaNatyam involves many split characters that are depicted by the dancer. The dancer will take on numerous characters by switching roles through the swift turn in circle and creates a story line that can be easily followed by the feat of one individual. The characters will be understood by the narrative of the song and the expression, or "abhinaya”. However, in more modern times, BharathaNatyam performances have taken stage as group performances involving dramatic aspects that require many characters depicted by various dancers. In addition, these dance performances include numerous transitions and formations that are creatively choreographed to enhance the movements along with the music. Spiritual symbolism BharathaNatyam is the manifestation of the ancient idea of the celebration of the eternal universe through the celebration of the beauty of the material body. Some BharathaNatyam techniques can be traced back to the Kaisiki style. It is said in Natya Shastra about the Kaisiki style explaining the dance of the blue- throated lord (Shiva). “It consists of elaborate gestures (Mridu Angaharas, movements of limbs), sentiments (Rasas), emotional states (Bhavas) & Actions (Kriyas), which are its soul. The costume should be charmingly beautiful; and love (Sringara) is its foundation. It cannot be adequately portrayed by men. Except for women, none can practise it properly”. Apart from the Kaisiki style, Bharata Natyam imbibed some others. These reflect other yogis of spiritual revelations, such as the vision of two sages, Vyagrapada and Pathanjali in Chidambaram. In Hindu mythology, the whole universe is the dance of the Supreme Dancer, Nataraja, a name for Lord Shiva, the Hindu ascetic yogi and divine purveyor of destruction of evil. The symbolism of the dance of Shiva (in the form of Nataraja) is represented by the attitude called "Ananda Tandavam". Also known as the cosmic dancer, he is here the embodiment and manifestation of the eternal energy in five activities (panca-kriya): (Srishti) creation, pouring forth, unfolding; maintenance (sthiti); destruction or taking back (samhara); concealing, veiling, hiding the transcendental essence behind the garb of apparitions (tirobhava); and favoring, bestowing grace through a manifestation that accepts the devotee (anugraha). Shiva is depicted dancing on the dwarfish body of the demon Apasmara purusa, "forgetfulness, loss of memory" called in Tamil Muyalaka -- who represents ignorance, the destruction of which brings enlightenment, true wisdom, and release from the bondage of existences. Medieval decline Local kings often invited temple dancers (devadasi) to dance in their courts, the occurrence of which created a new category of dancers - rajanarthakis—and modified the technique and themes of the recitals. A devadasi had to satisfy her own soul while she danced unwatched and offered herself (surrendered) to the Lord, but the rajanarthaki's dance was meant to be an entertainment. The Natya Shastra-based margam elements, such as karanas, that were meant to spiritually enlighten the spectators, were gradually replaced by desi karanas, which were later replaced by adavus. The Bharatha Natyam recitals and ballets started more and more popularly viewed as a form of desi entertainment. The Tanjore quartet; Chinnayya Pillai, Ponniah Pillai, Sivanandam Pillai and Vadivelu Pillai, of the Tanjore Court, during the rule of Maratha King Saraboji II (1798–1832), made a rich contribution to music and Bharata Natyam and also completed the process of re-editing the Bharata Natyam programme into its present shape with its various items. The descendants of these four brothers formed the original stock of Nattuvanars or dance teachers of Bharata Natyam in Tanjore. Some of the well known Nattuvanars were Guru Meenakshisundaram Pillai, Guru Muthukumara Swami Pillai, Guru Ramaiah Pillai, Guru Kittappa Pillai, Guru Kubernath Tanjorkar, Guru Dandayudhapani Pillai and others. The fall of the Hindu kingdoms in the South marked the eventual decline of Natya, as the Muslim invasion in the North has completely wiped out Natya there. The sacred dance, one of the constituents of the Shodasa Upacharam, was replaced by rice offerings. Under British rule, propaganda prevailed against Indian art, misrepresenting it as crude, immoral, and inferior to the concepts of Western civilization. This influence was pervasive enough to dissuade the patronage of royal courts for ritual temple dances, and to alienate educated Indians from their traditions. The devadasi system declined. Most were forced to seek the patronage of ordinary wealthy people, becoming mere dasis, and in some cases prostitutes. This in turn diminished the reputation of the devadasis as a community. Even the terms by which the dance was known – Sadir, Nautch, Dasi Attam, and so on – took on derogatory connotations. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, social reformers under Western influence took advantage of these circumstances, launching an Anti-Nautch campaign to eradicate not only the prostitution that had come to be associated with devadasis, but the art itself, condemning it as a social evil. By the first quarter of the 20th century, the classical dance of South India was almost wiped out, even in Tamil Nadu. Modern rebirth Rukmini Devi Arundale is considered the most important revivalist in the Indian classical dance form of BharathaNatyam from its original 'sadhir' style. Rukmini Devi Arundale was also instrumental in modifying mainly the Pandanallur style of Bharatha Natyam and bringing it to the attention of the West. It can be said that, before she entered the field, the art was dead and gone or that it saw a renaissance only when she started to dance. Rukmini Devi Arundale introduced group performances and staged various BharathaNatyam- based ballets.  Rukmini Devi raised BharathaNatyam to a puritan art form, diverse from its recently controversial past by "removing objectionable elements" (mostly, the Sringara, certain emotional elements evocative of the erotic, such as hip, neck, lip and chest movements) from the Pandanallur style, which was publicly criticized by Balasaraswati and other representatives of the traditional devadasi culture. Not all love was portrayed, at least outside parameters considered "chaste". Balasaraswati said that "the effort to purify BharathaNatyam through the introduction of novel ideas is like putting a gloss on burnished gold or painting the lotus". Having studied BharataNatyam for three years, in 1936 Rukmini Devi Arundale founded the school “ Kalakshetra” outside the city of Madras to teach it and to promote other studies in Indian music and art. She was one of first teachers to instruct a few men to perform the dance. The dance, at that time, was exclusively performed by women, while men, called Nattuvanars, had only been teaching BharathaNatyam without actually performing it. It is worth noticing that most of the contemporary BharathaNatyam dancers do not satisfy the criteria for a professional danseuse stated in the scriptures. Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam, who was originally trained in the Vazhuvoor style of Bharata Natyam, was another figure who greatly influenced the development of BharathaNatyam. She started her research on karanas in early sixties, and later announced the creation of a new BharathaNatyam variety, Bharatanrityam, which was a Bharata Natyam-based reconstruction of Natya Shastra's technique. While the Pandanallur style, Tanjore or Thanjavur, Vazhuvoor, Mysore, Kancheepuram were based on the art of Rajadasis and are exoteric in nature, some others like the Melattur style and Balasaraswati's style grew out of the devadasis' distinctly different esoteric art.  At present, BharathaNatyam recitals are usually not performed inside the temple shrine but outside it, and even outside the temple compounds at various festivals. Most contemporary performances are given on the stage with a live ensemble. In modern culture, the adapted or "semi-classical" bharathanatyam has been exposed largely through popular movies and TV programs. Learning BharathaNatyam normally takes many years before the arangetram. There are academic and commercialized dance institutes in India & in many countries around the world. Many people choose to learn Carnatic music along with BharathaNatyam as they go together. At present, not only Hindus, but many Christians and Muslims also learn it, bringing it beyond the rigid forms of religious boundaries.