BSEH SS Dance Kathak cheat sheet

Kathak derives from the Sanskrit 'katha' (story) and 'kathakar' (storyteller); the form traces to temple and village recitation of epics by bards.

The Natyashastra of Bharata (c. 200 BCE–200 CE) is the foundational treatise cited for the dramatic and rhythmic principles later embodied in Kathak.

Medieval bhakti movements (Raslila of Braj, Krishna devotion) shifted Kathak from narrative recitation toward lyrical, expressional dance.

Mughal patronage (16th–18th centuries) moved Kathak into the court: emphasis on nritta, dazzling footwork, and Persian-influenced costume and presentation.

Nineteenth-century decline under colonial policy was reversed by revivalists; Kathak was institutionalized through academies and university curricula in the 20th century.

Bindadin Maharaj is credited with formalizing the Lucknow style's expressive repertoire; his compositions (bandish, thumri) remain core to the Lucknow gharana.

Kathak is one of eight classical dance forms recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi; it is the only one with strong North Indian (Hindustani) musical affiliation.

The form's evolution shows three broad phases: temple storytelling, court entertainment, and modern concert/stage presentation.

Gharana denotes a school or lineage defined by a shared stylistic lineage, repertoire, and teaching lineage (parampara).

Lucknow gharana: associated with Ishwari Prasad and Bindadin Maharaj; distinguished by expressive abhinaya, graceful movement, and emphasis on bhava.

Jaipur gharana: associated with Bhanuji and the Maharaj family; distinguished by vigorous pure dance (nritta), complex footwork, and strong rhythmic virtuosity.

Banaras gharana: associated with Janaki Prasad; distinguished by forceful, grounded movement and a distinctive style of tatkar and bhava.

Raigarh gharana: associated with Raja Chakradhar Singh; known for compositions in rare talas and emphasis on layakari.

Distinguishing markers between gharanas include the style of tatkar (heel-toe vs. flat foot), repertoire emphasis, and the treatment of laya.

Modern practice often blends gharanas; a performer's gharana is identified by training lineage rather than exclusive repertoire.

Tatkar: the basic footwork pattern, typically rendered in teental as 'ta thei thei tat, aa thei thei tat'.

Tukra: a short, self-contained rhythmic composition of bols, usually ending on sam.

Toda: a longer, structured nritta composition, often with a specific rhythmic design and a concluding tihai.

Paran: a composition using bols derived from pakhawaj (e.g., dha, dhin, na, ta, tete), typically weightier and more percussive.

Gat: a stylized, often narrative walk or movement sequence; gat bhao is the mimetic/expressional version.

Chakkar: a pirouette or spin; a series of chakkars typically concludes with a tihai landing on sam.

Tihai: a phrase repeated three times so the final beat lands on sam; a core device for rhythmic resolution.

Amad: an entrance composition, often in a slow tempo, used to begin a nritta sequence.

Laya is tempo: vilambit (slow), madhya (medium), and drut (fast); layakari is the deliberate manipulation of laya against the tala cycle.

Teental: 16 matras, divided 4+4+4+4; the most common Kathak tala.

Jhaptal: 10 matras, divided 2+3+2+3; a common tala for compositions and thumri.

Dadra: 6 matras, divided 3+3; frequently used for thumri and dadra compositions.

Rupak: 7 matras, divided 3+2+2; notable because sam falls on the first matra of the khali section.

Sam: the first beat of the cycle, the point of resolution; khali: the empty/unstressed section, marked by a wave of the hand.

Tali: a clap marking a stressed section; khali is marked by a wave; both are counted on the hand.

Layakari types include barabar (equal), dugun (double), tigun (triple), and chaugun (quadruple) relative to the base tempo.

Nritta: pure dance, abstract and rhythmic, with no expressional content; the focus is on form, footwork, and laya.

Nritya: expressional dance, where movement conveys mood and meaning through abhinaya.

Natya: drama, the dramatic element including characterization and narrative; the broadest of the three categories.

The Natyashastra treats these as the three components of dramatic art, with nritta and nritya serving natya.

In Kathak, a typical performance moves from nritta (tatkar, toda, tukra) into nritya (gat bhao, thumri, bhajan).

Gat bhao is nritya: the dancer mimes a narrative or mood while moving in a stylized gat.

A tukra or paran is nritta: it has no meaning beyond its rhythmic structure.

A thumri or bhajan rendering is nritya, using abhinaya to interpret the text.

Abhinaya is the means of expression, classified as angika (body), vachika (speech/song), aharya (costume/makeup), and sattvika (inner emotional state).

Bhava is the emotional state or mood that the performer embodies; rasa is the aesthetic experience it produces in the audience.

Navarasa: shringara (love), hasya (laughter), karuna (compassion), raudra (anger), veera (heroism), bhayanaka (fear), bibhatsa (disgust), adbhuta (wonder), shanta (peace).

Shringara is the dominant rasa in Kathak's thumri and gat bhao repertoire.

Sattvika abhinaya is the internal, involuntary response; it cannot be performed mechanically and is considered the highest form of abhinaya.

Aharya abhinaya includes costume, makeup, and stage properties; in Kathak it supports but does not substitute for expression.

Navarasa are evoked through a combination of vibhava (cause), anubhava (response), and vyabhichari bhava (transient states).

A single thumri may move through several bhavas, requiring the dancer to shift rasa within one composition.

Thumri: a light-classical Hindustani vocal form, usually in dadra or jhaptal, with a romantic or devotional text; central to Kathak nritya.

Dadra: a light-classical form in dadra tala (6 matras), simpler and shorter than thumri.

Ghazal: an Urdu poetic form with couplets (sher), often set in light classical style; used for expressional Kathak.

Bhajan: a devotional song, typically in Hindi or a regional language, used for nritya with a religious theme.

Padam: a South Indian devotional song form; less central to Kathak than to Bharatanatyam, but used in some repertoires.

Gat bhao: a mimetic gat where the dancer enacts a narrative or mood while moving in a stylized walk.

A typical Kathak concert order: amad, tatkar, toda/tukra/paran, gat bhao, thumri or bhajan, concluding with a tihai and chakkar.

Traditional female Kathak costume: a long, flared lehenga or a churidar-kurta with a dupatta, often in bright colors; the male costume is a churidar-kurta with a sash.

Ghungroo (ankle bells) are the defining costume element; their number ranges from about 100 to 200 per ankle depending on the dancer.

Makeup emphasizes the eyes and eyebrows; a bindi and alta (red dye) on the hands and feet are traditional.

Accompaniment: tabla (or pakhawaj for heavier compositions), harmonium or sarangi for melody, and vocal support for nritya.

The tabla player follows the dancer's bols and laya; the sarangi or harmonium provides the melodic line and vocal accompaniment.

Padhant is the recitation of bols by the dancer, often synchronized with the tabla; it is a distinctive Kathak feature.

Stage presentation follows a front-facing orientation; the dancer uses the upstage-downstage axis for entrances and chakkars.

Lighting is typically frontal with a follow spot; the stage is bare, with the orchestra seated upstage or to the side.

Bindadin Maharaj: Lucknow gharana; composed many thumris and bandish still performed; brother of Kalka Prasad.

Kalka Prasad and Ishwari Prasad: Lucknow gharana lineage; Ishwari Prasad is credited with shaping the Lucknow style.

Bhanuji Maharaj: associated with the Jaipur gharana lineage.

Janaki Prasad: associated with the Banaras gharana.

Raja Chakradhar Singh of Raigarh: patron and composer; associated with the Raigarh gharana and rare talas.

Sitara Devi: Lucknow gharana; known for dynamic, film-influenced presentation and popularizing Kathak on stage and screen.

Birju Maharaj: Lucknow gharana; a leading modern exponent, known for abhinaya, layakari, and teaching.

Kumudini Lakhia: a major innovator, known for group choreography and contemporary Kathak presentation.

Tatkar is executed with a flat-footed heel-toe action; the sound should be clean and even, with the weight centered.

Chakkars are executed by spotting the head and using the arms to generate momentum; the spin concludes on sam with a tihai.

Layakari in practice means shifting between barabar, dugun, tigun, and chaugun while keeping the tala cycle intact.

Padhant requires reciting bols in the correct laya while the tabla follows; the dancer leads, the percussionist responds.

Improvisation in Kathak is structured: the dancer selects a tala, a laya, and a compositional type (tukra, paran, gat bhao) and builds within it.

Abhinaya practice uses sanchari bhava: the dancer elaborates a single line of text through multiple moods and images.

Gat bhao requires a clear narrative sequence: entrance, development of the mood, and a resolved conclusion.

Endurance and breath control are trained through sustained tatkar in vilambit laya before moving to drut.