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Attire, Musical Instruments and Symbolism

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 Attire The attire of a Bharatanatyam dancer resembles a Tamil Hindu's bridal dress. It consists of a fitted, brilliantly colored Sari which is mainly of warm colors with mirrors on them. The Sari is made of a specially stitched pleated cloth which falls in front and opens like a hand fan when she flexes her knees or performs footwork. The Sari is worn in a special way, wrapped upwards along the back and tightly to the body contour, past one shoulder, with its end held at the waist by a jeweled belt. The dancer is typically adorned with jewelry on her ear, nose, and neck that outlines her head or hair. Her face has conventional makeup, eyes lined and ringed by collyrium, which help viewers see her eye expressions. Her hair is tied up in the traditional way, often braided in with fragrant flowers (veni or gajra). She wears one or more leather anklets (ghungroos). Ghungroos are basically made up of small bells. They can be either attached to a broad strap that has bells uniformly att...
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The Arangetram

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 The Arangetram A Bharatanatyam Arangetram is a solo debut performance that signifies the completion of initial formal training of a young dancer in Indian Classical Dance. The term Arangetram translates to "ascending the stage". This performance is typically done ten to twelve years after a dancer begins learning Bharatanatyam, but more importantly, it is done when the guru believes the student is ready for a solo performance. This solo debut is synonymous to a "coming-of-age" celebration but in terms of Indian Classical Dance. The Arangetram is a culmination of multiple years of hard work by the student and the guru, and it is an opportunity for the dancer to showcase his or her dedication and skills developed over the years. Throughout this debut, the dancer performs a series of dances that are learned over a course of time. The dancer must build up his or her concentration and stamina to perform solo dances for approximately three hours. Each dance performed sym...
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History of Bharatanatyam

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 History of Bharatanatyam Bharatanatyam remained exclusive to Hindu temples through the 19th century. It was banned by the colonial British government in 1910, but the Indian community protested against the ban and expanded its performance outside temples in the 20th century. Modern stage productions of Bharatanatyam has been spread out and popular throughout India that has been done in different ways and have incorporated technical performances, pure dance based on non-religious ideas and fusion themes. Bharatanatyam was also known as the dance of the devadasi clan to entice the royals in olden days.
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Description of Bharatanatyam

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 DESCRIPTION OF BHARATANATYAM Bharatanatyam contains different types of banis. Bani, or tradition, is a term used to describe the dance technique and style specific to a guru or school. These are named according to the village of the guru (with the exception of some banis). Bharatanatyam style is noted for its fixed upper torso, bent legs and knees flexed (Aramandi) combined with spectacular footwork, and a sophisticated vocabulary of sign language based on gestures of hands, eyes, and face muscles. The dance is accompanied by music and a singer, and typically the dancer's guru is present as the Nattuvanar, director, and conductor of the performance and art. The dance has traditionally been a form of an interpretive narration of mythical legends and spiritual ideas from Hindu texts. performance repertoire of Bharatanatyam, like other classical dances, includes: 1. nrita (pure dance)  2.nritya (solo expressive dance)  3. natya (group dramatic dance).
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About Bharatanatyam

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 Bharatanatya is a major form of Indian classical dance that originated in Modern day region of Tamil Nadu. Natya Shastra by Bharata Muni and "Abhinaya Darpana" by Nandikeshvara are considered to be the original sources of Bharatanatyam (an Indian classical dance form). The dance form is also briefly mentioned in Kannada text Manasolalla written by Someshwara III. It has flourished in the temples and courts of southern India since ancient times.It is one of eight widely recognized Indian classical dance forms (the others being Kathak, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Manipuri and Sattriya) and it expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas, particularly of Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism.A description of Bharatanatyam from 2nd century CE can be found in the ancient Tamil epic Silappatikaram, while temple sculptures of the 6th to 9th century CE suggest it was a highly refined performance art by the mid-1st millennium CE.[6][7] Bharatanatyam is the...
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