Indian Classical Dance Forms
Domain 2 asks you to place each of the eight forms recognised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi with its state, technique, repertoire and signature feature. Examiners reward the identifying detail, not a general description.
The eight
- Bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu): temple and Sadir lineage; aramandi stance; the margam runs alarippu → jatiswaram → shabdam → varnam → padam → tillana; the nattuvanar conducts with cymbals; traditionally a solo (ekaharya) form.
- Kathak (North India, Uttar Pradesh): court tradition; gharanas of Lucknow, Jaipur and Banaras; tatkar footwork, chakkar spins, padhant bol-recitation, ghunghroo; abhinaya through thumri and pada.
- Kathakali (Kerala): dance-drama; chutti make-up and huge headgear; mudras codified from the Hastalakshanadipika; chenda and maddalam percussion.
- Kuchipudi (Andhra Pradesh): the village Bhagavathulu tradition; tarangam performed on a brass plate; a sutradhara introduces the play.
- Odissi (Odisha): mahari and gotipua roots; chowka (square, Jagannath) and tribhangi (three bends); mangalacharan through to moksha.
- Manipuri (Manipur): Ras Leela, Pung cholom, Lai Haraoba; soft, rounded lasya movement.
- Mohiniyattam (Kerala): lasya-dominant, side-to-side sway, white-and-gold kasavu.
- Sattriya (Assam): from Sankardeva's sattras; mati akhara training; recognised as classical in 2000.
Worked example
A question describes a dancer in a square, knees-bent stance with palms joined and asks the form. Reasoning: the square stance is chowka, the signature of Odissi's Jagannath-oriented items. Knees-out alone could suggest aramandi, but the square base plus joined palms in an invocatory context points to Odissi's mangalacharan, not Bharatanatyam.
Traps
Labelling Kathak a temple ritual - it is a court form. Giving Kathakali's mudra source to Kuchipudi. Saying Manipuri is only lasya; Pung cholom is vigorous. Dating Sattriya to 2000 - that is its recognition year, not its origin.