Indian Classical Dance Forms
What is tested
The exam checks whether you can match each classical form to its region, language, repertoire, stance, costume and accompaniment, and whether you can distinguish classical from folk. The Sangeet Natak Akademi recognises eight classical dance forms.
The eight forms
- Bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu): Carnatic music, nattuvangam cymbals, araimandi stance, margam from alarippu to tillana.
- Kathak (north India): Hindustani music, Jaipur, Lucknow and Banaras gharanas, tatkar footwork, chakkars, pakhawaj or tabla.
- Kathakali (Kerala): chutti makeup, codified mudras, chenda and maddalam drums, heroic and mythological plots.
- Kuchipudi (Andhra Pradesh): Bhama Kalapam, tarangam, plate dancing, Siddhendra Yogi tradition.
- Odissi (Odisha): tribhangi and chowk stances, mardala drum, mangalacharan, pallavi and moksha.
- Manipuri (Manipur): Ras Leela, Pung Cholom, Nat Sankirtana, gentle circular movement.
- Mohiniyattam (Kerala): lasya-dominant, white and gold costume, Swathi Thirunal compositions.
- Sattriya (Assam): Srimanta Sankardeva's sattra tradition, khol drum and cymbals; recognised as classical in 2000.
Worked example
A dancer performs a varnam in araimandi to Carnatic music with nattuvangam. The stance, language and ensemble place it in Bharatanatyam. If the dancer used tribhangi and chowk with a mardala, the form would be Odissi, because stance and accompaniment are form-specific.
Traps
Kathak and Kathakali are different forms from different regions. Kathakali and Mohiniyattam are both from Kerala but contrast tandava-style drama with lasya. Do not call Sattriya folk; it is classical. Do not use 'oldest' as a safe label for any one form.