Bharatnatyam

Bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu) was formerly known as the Sadir Attam. Bharatanatyam expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Shaivism .

Krishna Iyer first coined the term Bharatanatyam for the Sadir dance. It evolved from ekaharya, where one dancer takes on many roles in a single performance. It emerged in the temples of South India, performed by Devdassis thus also known as Dasiattam.

It encompasses Bhav, Rag, Ras and Taal. Its three important features are Nritta (pure dance, solo), Natya (dramatic dance, group) and Nritya (dance with emotions, solo).

It consists of six portions:

Alarippu (Invocation), Jathiswaram (Nritta part), Shabdam (Short compositions with word), Varnam (a story, that includes both Nritta and Nritya), Padam (Religious prayer, Bhajan, Keerthanam) and Tillana (Origin in the Tarana of Hindustani Music).

A Bharatanatyam artist uses Abhinaya as a tool to convey ideas and evoke emotions among the audience members.

Abhinaya can be classified into four types:

• Satvika Abhinaya – expressing by evoking the state of mind of the character.
• Angika Abhinaya – expressing using body movements such as movement of hands, legs and limbs.
• Vachika Abhinaya – expressing using medium of speech such as songs, music and dialogues.
• Aharya Abhinaya – expressing using decorations such as costumes, jewelry and make up.

Different styles of Bharatanatyam, called Banis :-

Tanjavur Style : Kandappa Pillai one of the famous Nattuvanars (Guru /Teacher) of this style and a direct descendent of the Tanjore Quartette was trained by Kannuswami Pillai.

• Pandanallur Style is attributed to the famous Minakshisundaram Pillai who was a direct descendant of the Tanjore Quartette.
• Vazhavur style was created by Ramiah Pillai of Vazhuvoor town in Tamil Nadu.
• Kalakshetra Style is credited to the disciple of Minakshisundaram Pillai and a renowned Bharatanatyam exponent Rukmini Devi Arundale. Rukmini Devi founded the Kalakshetra Institute in
  Chennai making it a platform to promote Bharatanatyam as an art form.
• Mellatur Style is credited to Mangudi Doirairaja Iyer. It is known for its soft footwork and emphasis on the sringara rasa.

Famous Dancers :

• Kamala Narayan,
• Bala Saraswati,
• C. V. Chandrasekhar,
• Leela Samson,
• Mrinalini Sarabhai,
• Padma Subramanyam,
• Rukmini Devi, Sonal Mansingh,
• Yamini Krishnamurti,
• Lakshmana Swamy,
• Alarmel Valli,
• Smrithi Krishnamurthy,
• Hema Malini etc.