Chapter I

Introduction

1.1 Introduction

India is a very rich country in terms of art and culture. It offers

a large number of dance forms and each of these dance forms can be traced to
different regions of the country. The present-day classical dance styles of India share
common roots though they are different from one another. Each form represents the
culture and spirit of a particular region where it is evolved. Indian classical dance
forms which have developed over a long period of time have a set of tenets that have
been followed over hundreds of years. Each dance style has its own history,
technique, style, along with distinctive music, costume and make-up.

Of all the human expressions dancing is spontaneous and evocative of the

moods and emotions. Primitive man communicated through gestures, expressions and
sign language before the development of the languages. This gesticulation and acting
system must have developed as dance and drama at a later stage. Pre-historic dance
was simple. The ignorance and helplessness against the fury of nature prompted our
pre-historic ancestors to appease and propitiate various forces of nature with song and
dance. Seeing a beauty and aesthetic satisfaction in these gesticulations and
movements, man must have developed a system over centuries to codify the art of
dancing (Raghavan 1959: 35).

Dance in India has a specific and sentimental background. History of Indian

dance can be traced to pre-Vedic period. The rural set-up introduced folk dances,
which were performed during harvests and ceremonies. But the fine arts in the
classical form are mainly the contribution of Hindu religion. To please the forces of
nature, various modes of worship came into existence. Literature, dance, drama and
music became the synthesising factors which were interdependent and became one of
the important modes of worship to please Gods (Nandagopal 1990:13). The art of
classical dance in India marks the culmination of long process of evolution of one of
the greatest civilisations in the world (Khokar1977:6). Dance in India has a history of
thousands of years. Representation of dancing in classical, medieval and modern

1
literature, sculpture, iconography and painting is abundant. Dance finds its
representation in the Vedas, Upanishads and epics like Mahabharata and Ramayana.
The artistic evidence on the sub-continent unambiguously demonstrates the antiquity
as well as continuity of the centrality of dance in Indian culture (Vatsyayan 2007:10).
The Sanskrit grammar text, Pāṇini’s Aṣtādhyāyi of fifth century B.C., speaks of two
‘Naṭasūtras’, the two manuals for the actors authored by Śilālin and Kriśāśva.1
Though these Naṭasūtras are not extant now, it is clear from the description that the
art of drama, dance and music was mature enough to be codified in the form of
aphorisms ‘sūtras’ during the time of Pāṇini. The Nāṭyaśāstra, dated to be between
second century BC and second century CE, is the earliest surviving literature on dance
in Sanskrit. This encyclopaedic work, ascribed to sage Bharata, deals with various
topics related to the science and arts of drama. The reason that theatre-arts were
discussed specifically in the Nāṭyaśāstra is that, in ancient India, drama was
considered as the most comprehensive form of art-expressions. It was a
comprehensive vision of art, which flourished in diversity. All art expressions had an
ultimate goal of providing entertainment and education by fine-tuning the senses and
sense perceptions2.

The Nāṭyaśāstra (to be denoted as NS hereafter) deals with the whole realm of
drama and its performance through four media of communication called the four
abhinayas or ‘caturvidha abhinaya’. The action proper (āṅgika abhinaya), spoken
word including the songs (vācika abhinaya), make up, costume and stage properties
(āhārya abhinaya) the representation of physical and psychological reactions which
require to a greater degree of the actor’s entering into the character portrayed (sātvika
abhinaya). Āṅgikābhinaya or the expression conveyed through the action of the limbs
involves the whole gamut of movements in dance or drama, including the subtle
movements of the eyebrows to a bursting leap or a lightning twirl. The NS and later
texts have devoted major portion of their treatises for a detailed description of
āṅgikābhinaya. Hence it is clear that exhaustive study of āṅgikābhinaya is essential
for the comprehensive understanding of the performing art form that is originated in
India.

1
Pāṇini’s Aṣtādhyāyi, Sūtras IV.3.110-111
2
www. srinivasrao.org/summer/Springs%20of%20Art.pdf downloaded on 10.8.2012

2
 Essentially one can divide the known history of dance in India into three
periods, the first one from the ancient period to the 9th Century AC and the second
from the 10th Century AC to the 18th Century AC (Ramachandra 2000: 21) and after
18th century till now falls in the third period. During the first period, Sanskrit was the
premier language for all kinds of learning and hence had an influence on dance as
well. This resulted in the dance style being more or less uniform throughout the
country. The dance during this period followed the Nāṭyaśāstra with very little
deviation from the principles it had laid down, and hence during this period dance,
drama and music were performed as one comprehensive art form which was called as
‘Nāṭya’. The second period is characterized by regional diversifications and
experimentation with new and fresh ideas which appealed to the regional populace.
During the same time regional languages became robust and they too contributed
significantly for the development of the regional dance traditions. However the
regional dance traditions depended on Sanskritic tradition and nāṭya concept. Hence
the dance during this period still followed the essential concepts of the Nāṭyaśāstra. In
the second period modern classical dance forms began developing on structural,
conceptual and thematic front. After eighteenth century classical dance traditions
further evolved and thus modern day Bharatanāṭyam, Kathak, Oḍissi, Kucipuḍi,
Kathakaḷi, Mohiniyāṭṭam, Maṇipuri and Satriyā forms started acquiring their
definitive form, content and techniques3. Improvisation in the articulation of body
movements, performance format, thematic interpretation and the mode of dressing
differentiates each of these classical dances from one another.

1.1 Mārga and deśī

Medieval theoreticians who wrote on dance and drama4 have broadly divided
dance into two categories- the mārga and deśī. The first category strictly adhered to
the rules of the Nāṭyaśāstra and hence called as the mārga, which meant the
‘established path’. The other tradition, the deśī indicated the regional tradition. The
transitional forms created by blending of mārga and the regional variations also were

3
The modern day classical dances were so named during nationalist movement of India and the
subsequent resurrection of the indigenous art forms in 1940 and 1950. Though the nomenclature
classical dance is of recent origin but the roots of these dance traditions are embedded in the ancient
and medieval dance traditions of India.
4
Starting from 12th century theoretician Śārṅgadeva who wrote the magnum opus Saṅgīta Ratnākara
till 18th century writer Tuḷaja who penned Saṅgīta Sārāmṛta

3
called as the deśī. Mārga was popular till tenth century and after this period
assimilation of dance forms led to the evolution of dance.(Raghavan Nṛtya enjoyed a
separate status and it no longer was subsidiary to the art of nāṭya. When nṛtya became
an independent art form it was necessary to modify the structure of dance by widening
the existing corpus. The innovation and improvisation that took place in using the
āṅgika, vācika and āhārya abhinaya specially formed the basis of distinguishing nṛtya
from nāṭya. However the rules of sātvika abhinaya remained same for both the art
forms. When regional languages developed, then came several regional variations and
ramifications of the mārga style (Bose 2007:289). This gave rise to a new tradition of
dance which was named by theoreticians of medieval period as ‘deśī’ since they
represented regional style of dance.

The treatises and manuals which came after twelfth century have discussed
elaborately on the deśī tradition. Texts like Mānasollāsa of Someśvara, Saṅgīta
Ratnākara of Śārṅgadeva, Nṛttaratnāvali of Jāyasenāpati, Saṅgīta Samayasāra of
Pārshvadeva, Nṛtyādhyāya of Aśokamalla, Nartana Nirṇaya of Pundarīka Viṭṭala,
Saṅgīta Darpaṇa of Dāmodara and Saṅgīta Makaranda of Veda provide significant
information on this tradition. Though the tenth century text Daśarūpaka of
Dhananjaya mentions about deśī but it is the twelfth century text Mānasollāsa which
gives substantial information on this tradition for the first time. Surprisingly
Mānasollāsa does not define the term deśī; it does not even demarcate between the
mārga and deśī. The thirteenth century text Saṅgīta Ratnākara and later texts have
defined mārga and deśī in clear terms and provided exhaustive information on both
the traditions. The details given in the above mentioned treatises and several other
related texts are discussed in detail in Chapter II of this thesis.

The deśī tradition of dance was widely practiced till 18th century. The tradition
was so named because it was developed under the influence of regional culture,
custom, ritual, perception and philosophy. The deśī tradition played an important role
in the evolution of classical dance in India. The evolution and development of Indian
dance has its origin not only in Nāṭyaśāstra but also in the regional literature and art
which contributed for its prolific movement of Indian classical dance. The theory and
practical approach of Indian dance cannot be understood in its true sense without the
knowledge of the deśī tradition because this represents the dance form that was

4
popular during medieval period. The medieval history of Indian classical dance forms
an important link between the ancient and the modern history of classical dance. But
the medieval history of Indian dance is not much explored by researchers. Though it
is known that the deśī tradition has contributed for the form and structure of present-
day classical dances. But the extent of its contribution to the existing traditions of
dance is unknown. Therefore a methodical study is vital to understand the influence
and impact of the deśī tradition on the existing classical dance traditions. Hence the
present research aims to understand different aspects of the deśī dance tradition as
given in Sanskrit texts originated from the regions that are now known as Karnataka,
Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Odisha. The research also intends
to study the contribution of the deśī tradition to the present day classical dance forms
that are developed in the above mentioned regions. Hence the study of dance
movements of chosen classical dance forms that are seemingly derived from both the
mārga and the deśī tradition is one of the important focuses of this research. Classical
dance forms such as Bharatanāṭyamm, Kucipuḍi, Oḍissi, Kathakaḷi and Mohiniyāṭṭam
are chosen for the study. These dance forms are declared as the classical dance
traditions of Tamilnadu, Andhra Region5, Odisha and Kerala states respectively. The
states are geographically located in the Southern part of India with the exception of
Odisha which is in the Eastern part of India. However if we scrutinise the history6, it
is evident that Oḍisha had strong links with the southern region in terms of cultural,
social and political milieu (Panda 2001:132). Moreover Oḍissi dance shares many
similarities with Bharatanāṭyamm and Kucipuḍi with respect to the movement
techniques, format, structure and the costume.

1.2 Kinetics and kinesthetics

The title of this research includes two words- ‘kinetics’ and ‘kinesthetics’. In
the perspective of dance ‘kinetics’ indicates the study of dance movements.
Kinesiology is the study of human and animal movement, performance, and function7
(Gabriel 1998:123) Kinesiology addresses physiological, mechanical and
psychological mechanisms. It is an academic discipline that focuses on the physics of
movement and how it affects people's performance, culture and quality of life.

5
Andhra region connotes to Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in this thesis.
6
Political and Cultural History of Orissa by Shishir Kumar Panda. New Age International. 1998
7
Body, Movement and Culture: Kinesthetic and Visual Symbolism in Philippine Community

5
‘Kinetics’ in the title of this thesis indicates the study of a particular movement, its
function and factors related to its performative action. The term has been used here to
comprehend the techniques and function of present day Indian classical dances with
respect to the deśī tradition.

Kinesthetics connotes to active learning. Kinesthetics is related to the

sensation of moving the body and experiencing the feedback from the muscles and
tendons and other parts of the musculoskeletal system. Kinesthetic term has been used
here both literally and figuratively. Pedagogical theorists such as Howard Gardner
describes that comprehending of space and motion is a unique type of intelligence and
it is useful in various fields as athletics, engineering, computing, dance and martial
arts. Kinesthetics is a teaching method and learning method in which a student learns
by doing a physical activity. Instead of learning by hearing a lecture or observing a
demonstration he actively participates in the learning process 8 (Bach 2001:67)
‘Kinesthetics’ in this research title indicates the movements relating to the deśī
tradition are reconstructed and performed by the researcher herself to understand the
technicalities, functions and performative aspect of such movements. This has helped
the researcher to investigate deeper into the articulation of deśī karaṇas and their
components such as cāris and sthānakas in various dance traditions chosen for the
study.

1.3 Objectives of the study

This study is an attempt to bring out different aspects of deśī dance tradition such as,

 Trace the evolutionary process of Indian classical dances in their framework of

interrelationship on the basis of the deśī tradition.
 Recognition of the deśī karaṇas, cāris and sthānakas in the above mentioned
dance traditions. To identify the modification of deśī karaṇas and their
elements in the existing practicing traditions of Bharatanāṭyam, Kucipuḍi,
Kathakaḷi, Mohiniyāṭṭam and Oḍissi dance traditions.

8
Michelle Bach in ‘Kinesthetic Learning’, 2001: 67

6
  To understand the prayoga and śāstra of classical dance traditions of South
India and Odisha, namely Bharatanāṭyam, Kucipuḍi, Kathakaḷi, Mohinīāṭṭam
and Oḍissi with respect to the deśī tradition.

The Sangeet Natak Akademi, the government body of India has awarded classical
status to eight Indian classical dance styles: Bharatanāṭyam of Tamil Nadu (which is
also popular in Karnataka), Kathak of North India, Kathakaḷi and Mohiniyāṭṭam of
Kerala, Kucipuḍi of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Maṇipuri of Manipur, Oḍissi of
Odisha and Satriya of Assam. Out of these, five styles of classical dances namely
Kucipuḍi, Kathakaḷi, Mohiniyāṭṭam and Oḍissi have been chosen for the study. A
brief history of the dance traditions chosen for the study and a detailed study of the
dance techniques involved in these traditions with respect to the deśī tradition has
been dealt in chapter IV of the thesis.

Motivation

This researcher was fortunate to be trained under illustrious gurus of

Bharatanatyam for more than twenty years. Being a performer and teacher of
Bharatanatyam, the researcher was intrigued by the enormous gap between the śāstra
(theory) and prayoga (performance technique) of this enchanting dance form. The
dichotomy of the texts and the performance is well known in Indian classical dance.
But no satisfactory explanation is available in any of our texts. Many of the
movements and postures that are in the practising tradition today are not found in NS.
They are just learnt as ‘postures’ and ‘movements units’ in oral tradition. Hence it is
clear that the evolution of Indian classical dance has its origin in more sources than
the traditions codified in the NS. If they are not in NS then from where else did we
absorb them? What could be the origin of these terms and their related movements
and expressions? What ‘other unknown source’ has influenced Indian classical dance?
The journey set out to find answers to these questions resulted in the current research
work. This required meticulous and systematic analysis of Indian dance history which
spans over several centuries, study of texts, sculptures, oral traditions and the
performative aspect of Indian classical dances. Without going into the intricate details
of the technical aspect of dancing it is highly impossible to understand the
contribution of the other traditions to the present day classical dance forms of India.

7
Textual and sculptural evidences

India is fortunate to have a rich collection of literature on dance. The wealth of

manuals and Sanskrit treatises spanning a time period of nearly two thousand years
reflect the continuity of a great tradition. Mandakranta Bose in ‘Movement and
Mimesis’ opines that the most comprehensive view of dance in India is one that is
derived from Sanskrit textual sources. To reconstruct ancient dances of India one may
have no better guides than these authors. Majority of these works have been available
for a long time but systematic research on them is a comparatively a recent
development. (Bose 2005: 12).

Like ‘dance and literature’, ‘dance and sculpture’ are also interrelated. Dance
is a visual poetry that is dependent on space like sculpture, painting and architecture.
Like music, it is dependent on rhythm and hence dance is the only art that is
dependent on time and space. In India, dance and sculpture are interdependent art
forms and they are interlinked in social, cultural, historical and religious streams.
Indian classical dances, temple architecture and dance sculptures are complementary
to one another. Temple architecture has the opportunity to be more meaningful by
drawing inspiration from tradition. Both the dancer and the architect manipulate
spaces, a dancer through the movement of the body and an architect by the design of
built forms. Sculptural representations of dance have preserved beautiful movements
and striking moments of the ancient dance traditions. Dance scenes can be seen in the
Udayagiri and Khandagiri caves of 2 nd century BC in Orissa. Stupas at Bharhut, Sāñci
and Amarāvati are brimming with panels of dancers. Beautiful panels of group
dancers adorn Gandhāra art, and of course, the early, medieval temples all over India
(Vatsyayan 2000:11). Thus it could be argued that the textual and sculptural sources
are the authentic evidences to uncover the past techniques of Indian dance.

1.4 Chronological classification

Chronologically Indian classical dance can be brought under three broader

time frames - the ancient, the medieval and the modern.

The Ancient – The dance that was popular till 10th century AC. The dance-sculptures
all over India and inscriptions of this period indicate that Nāṭyaśāstric format was the

8
central tradition of dance during this period. Even the sculptors were highly dance
conscious and their perceptions in adopting dance techniques in its original form
rendered by Bharata could be observed in their artistic expression. It appears by the
time of early Cālukyan, the Nāṭyaśāstra tradition of dance was quite popular, attracted
the attention of kings and sculptors in this period.

The 8th century inscription at Paṭṭadakal Virūpākṣa temple in Karnataka speaks

of celebrated artiste Achalan and describes his mastery over Nāṭyaśāstra. From the
inscription it is clear that Achalan was an expert in Bharata’s Nāṭyaśāstra and
mastered the techniques of drama and acting. He was both an actor and a dancer
(Murty 1987:47). The inscription throws light on the popularity of Bharata’s
Nāṭyaśāstra in this region during the ancient period. Scholar D B Mishra in his article
‘Glimpses of Performing Art Heritage in Orissan Inscriptions’ 9 argues that the first
century inscriptions in the rock-cut caves of Khandagiri- Udayagiri indicate dance,
drama and music were based on the Gandharva Veda and the Nāṭyaśāstra. Thus the
epigraphic and sculptural evidences prove that the mainstream dance during this
period followed the tenets of Nāṭyaśāstra.

The Medieval - dance that was popular between 10th and 18th century. Music and
dance evolved and grew as different branches over the centuries. Every region
developed its own style and technique which came as a result of local practices and
customs. The dance styles were very strong and soon became popular in their
respective regions. The treatises that were composed during this period on dance
included these local trends and traditions. They discussed the newer traditions and
called them as ‘deśī tradition’ by separating them from the ‘mārga tradition’ set by
Bharata.

The Modern – The further synthesis of mārga and deśī tradition led to the evolution
and development of the present- day classical dance forms during this period.
Regional diversification became more and more distinct. In later centuries several
texts incorporated the existing and emerging styles in the respective regions. Thus
originating from the Nāṭyaśāstric format, the schools of classical dance such as
Kathak, Oḍissi, Bharatanāṭyamm, Kucipuḍi, Kathakkali, Mohiniyāṭṭam and Manipuri

9
orissa.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/may2006/ engpdf/22-29.pdf downloaded on 26.07.2012

9
evolved themselves as independent styles supported by their own textual bases.
(Nandagopal 2011:5). With regard to these classical dance styles, it looks like a
geographical zone has been made while classifying them. Thus Oḍissi dance
developed in the state of Odisha, Bharatanāṭyam in Tamilnadu and Karnataka,
Kucipuḍi in Andhra region, Bharatanāṭyam in Tamilnadu and Karnataka Manipuri
dance grew and developed in Manipur, Kathak in North Indian states, Kathakkali and
Mohiniyāṭṭam in Kerala and Satriya in Assam. These dance styles reflect the
language, culture, heritage, aesthetics and sensitivity of the regions in which they are
developed. Change is the law of nature and it is also true in the case of classical
dances. Classical dance in India is a continuously evolving art form. But, the changes
and innovations in techniques are very slowly absorbed and assimilated by this ever
growing art form. The modifications and innovations stand the test of time.

1.5 Key concepts in Indian classical dance

For a better understanding of the subject some of the key concepts of Indian classical
dance which are of particular importance to this research are explained here. They are
caturvidha abhinaya, aṅga, upāṅga, pratyaṅga, nṛtta, nṛtya, nāṭya, karaṇa, cārī,
sthānaka, nṛtta hasta, aṅgahāra.

Caturvidha Abhinaya

In Nāṭyaśāstra Bharata describes histrionics, which is called as abhinaya. The

nāṭya can be communicated to the spectators in four ways through four types of
abhinaya which is termed as caturvidha abhinaya. The entire technique of Indian
dance is categorised into four types of abhinaya 10. These are technicalities of acting
like gestures (āṅgika), vocal (vācika), costume and make up, ornaments (āhārya), and
the temperament or emotional (sātvika).

1. Āṅgikābhinaya: The communication through body movements, called

āṅgikābhinaya, where the movements of major limbs such as head, chest, hands and
feet as well as movements of minor limbs such as eyes, nose, lips, cheeks, chin etc.
are involved. The glances, gestures, gaits are also part of āṅgikābhinaya. There are a
number of terms which are used to describe the gestures in the acting part of dance.

10
Abhinaya is histrionic representation

10
Mukhaja or of the face: This involves gesticulation of facial features such as
eyebrows, eyelids, eyeballs, nose, lips, chin and mouth. The rasa originating in the
heart is expressed through the various gestures of the face or mukha, mukhajābhinaya
is given prime importance because face is the mirror of one’s heart and mind.

Śarīra or the body: This involves the gesticulation expressed through the limbs of the
body. This uses the movements of limbs such as the head, neck, chest, belly, waist,
hips, thighs, arms, shanks, hands and feet. The medieval writers added the movements
of the heels, ankles, fingers and toes to this category.

Ceṣṭākṛta: This is the abhinaya resulting from the movement of the entire body. This
uses the movements of the entire body to convey the meanings or narrate a story in a
dance or drama.

2. Vacikābhinaya: This is the verbal aspect. The communication by speech is called

vācikābhinaya. This involves the music, dialogues, modes of address etc.

3. Āhāryābhinaya: Extraneous representation is called āhāryābhinaya where the

major emphasis given to the expression by means of costume, make up, ornaments,
stage properties etc.

4. Sātvikābhinaya: Representation of temperament of the characters is called

sātvikābhinaya. It is the superior quality of abhinaya and it expresses the internal
moods of the character. It also involves subtle movements of facial muscles, weeping,
trembling of cheek muscles etc.

Karaṇa

A karaṇa in dance is the harmonious rhythmic movements of hands, feet and

other parts of the body. Karaṇa is a combination of static and dynamic aspect of
dance i.e., a karaṇa involves sthānaka (static posture), cārīs (leg movements), and
nṛtta hasta (non-representational hand gesture) with graceful and appropriate
connecting movements called as recakas. Karaṇas are the fundamental units of
Indian dance. ‘Tāṇḍava Lakṣaṇam’, the fourth chapter of NS, defines karaṇa as
‘Hasta pāda samāyogāḥ nṛttasya karaṇam bhavet’ (NS, chapter 4-35) which means
the interrelated movements of hands and feet. Here ‘hasta’ or hands imply the upper

11
part of the body and ‘pāda’ or feet imply lower part of the body. In ‘Tāṇḍava
Lakṣaṇam’, Bharata describes the way of performing karaṇas and aṅgahāras as part
of āṅgikābhinaya. Nāṭyaśāstra has enumerated 108 karaṇas which are known as
mārga karaṇas. Saṅgīta Ratnākara, an important treatise the deśī tradition has
recorded 36 deśī karaṇas. Each of these movement units comprises the separate
movement of foot, calf, thigh, knee, waist, chest, neck, arms and hands and those
capable of combining with other movements. Longer sequences of movements
include combination of karaṇas and are like garlands of the enchanting movements of
the limbs. Thus they are called as aṅgahāras.

Cārī

This is predominantly the movements of the feet involving movements of shanks,

thighs and the hips. The word ‘cārī’ is derived from the root ‘char’ which means ‘to
move’ or ‘to walk’. NS calls cārī as vyāyāma or exercise. According to NS cārī is
generally the movements of a single foot (ēkapāda pracāra). The cārīs form one of
the important units of karaṇas. NS says in nāṭya, only when a situation demands a
suggestion of war or has a predominance of rhythm, cārīs can be used. The eleventh
chapter of Nāṭyaśāstra elucidates 32 cārīs. They are classified into bhūmi (earthly)
and ākāśa (aerial) cārīs on the basis of the nature of the movement. Saṅgīta
Ratnākara gives a list of 35 bhūmi and 19 ākāśa cāris of deśī variety.

Sthānaka

These are the postures or stances from where stylised movements emerge. It denotes
the ‘sthiti’ or static aspect of dance. A movement in dance begins and ends with a
posture suitable to the situation in dance. This stance or posture is known as sthānaka.
There are six puruṣa sthānaka (postures to depict male characters) and three sthrī
sthānaka (postures to depict female characters) according to NS. However medieval
authors on the deśī tradition have recorded many more sthānakas which can be seen
in various classical dance forms of our time. Saṅgīta Ratnākara gives a list of 23
sthānakas of deśī variety.

Aṅga, Upāṅga and Pratyaṅga- Āṅgikābhinaya depends on the movements of

different parts of the body. The various limbs of the body are classified as aṅgas

12
(major limbs), upāṅgas (minor limbs) by Bharata. Medieval authors added another
section to it, that is, pratyaṅgas (subsidiary limbs). The aṅgas as enlisted by Bharata
are the head, hands, chest, sides, waist and feet. The upāṅgas of the face are eyes,
eyebrows, nose, lower lip, cheeks and chin. The upāṅgas of the body are belly, thighs
and shanks. Saṅgīta Ratnākara discusses 6 pratyaṅgas and they are neck, arms, back,
belly, thighs and shanks. The various movements of major, minor and subsidiary
limbs are given in Appendix 2- 10.

Nṛtta

Indian dance can be divided into three categories and they are nṛtta, nṛtya and nāṭya.
Nṛtta corresponds to pure dancing which is non-representational and performed
rhythmically. Here the movements of the body do not convey any mood or meaning
and its purpose is to just create beauty by making various patterns, lines in space and
time. The highly symbolised movements and poses or sculpture like stances are inter
woven to a given rhythmic cycle. Nṛtta has two major constituents - tāla (time
measure) and laya (basic rhythm/ tempo). Nṛtta is often referred as pure or abstract
dance. It describes the movement of the body. Hand gestures used in nṛtta are only
decorative. They do not convey any meaning but only abstract in nature. They are
utilised to create various patterns in space.

Nṛtya

This is interpretative dance. Bharata has not mentioned a division known as nṛtya
technique of dance, but Vedic literature11 makes use of it extensively. However
Bharata has discussed even the minute aspect of this technique and named it
āṅgikābhinaya which is common to both dance and drama. Later theorists such as
Dhananjaya, Śaradātanaya, Śārṅgadeva etc. extensively made use of the term nṛtya.
Amarasimha’s Sanskrit lexicon, the Amarakośa (6th to 8th century AC) specifies nṛtya
as a full-fledged dance-type12. In nṛtya, meaning is conveyed through the facial
gestures and emotions. This involves a poetry or lyric pertaining to some situation,

11
Nṛtya manoamṛtam (ṚgVeda 5.33.6)

12
Tāṇḍava manatanamnāṭyam lāsyam nṛtyam ca nartane. (Amarakośa, Kanda I, NāṭyaVarga, Verse
192.

13
events and description along with a mime. According to Abhinaya Darpaṇa, nṛtya is
that dance which relates to sentiment (rasa) and psychological states (bhāva).

Nāṭya
Nāṭya corresponds to drama. This category combines both nṛtta and nṛtya elements of
dance. Nāṭya means dramatic representation involving all the three aspects- speech,
music and dancing. Here dancing and acting are combined to narrate a specific story.
Dance movements are also included in nāṭya. While discussing about nāṭya, senior
researcher Verma K M says ‘it is curious to note that the term nāṭya has often been
used in the earlier texts to mean nṛtya’ (Verma 1978: 12)

Earlier work

Many art historians, researchers and Indologists, relevant to their area of enquiry have
done research on the mārga tradition, related dance treatises and sculptures. Research
on dance sculptures and karaṇas is a fascinating area for renowned scholars like V.
Raghavan, Kapila Vatsyayan, R Satyanarayana, Choodamani Nandagopal and Padma
Subrahmanyam. Eminent scholar Mandakranta Bose has made a comprehensive study
of texts and manuals on dance traversing a period of 1500-2000 years.

Well known art historian Kapila Vatsyayan has done an exhaustive multi-disciplinary
study involving architecture, dance, painting and iconography. In her learned
expositions she traces the phenomenon that Indian tradition is an organic whole
amidst several contradictions. Her classification of karaṇas is famously known as
‘Vatsyayan model’. She has published critically acclaimed books based on her
research findings such as Classical Indian Art in Literature and Arts, Tradition of
Indian Folk Dance, Traditional Indian Theatre etc.

Art historian Choodamani Nandagopal has carried out an in-depth and full-fledged
research on dance heritage of Karnataka 30 years ago. Her multi-disciplinary
perspective on art forms of Karnataka became an outstanding model to study
Karnataka art and culture, in particular dance sculptures of Karnataka. Some of her
books extensively referred for this study are Dance and Music in Temple Architecture,
Classical Dance Heritage of Karnataka, Arts and Crafts of Indus Civilisation and
Shile-Kale. A systematic methodology has been established to study mārga karaṇas

14
in temple sculptures by senior researcher and dancer Padma Subrahmanyam in
Tamilnadu. She has reconstructed all the 108 mārga karaṇas specified in the
Nāṭyaśāstra. Nataraja Ramakrishna13 of Hyderabad and Tulasi Ramachandra 14 of
Mysore have successfully reconstructed Peraṇi (Periṇi), a deśī dance tradition.
Radhika Nandakumar15 of Mysore and Swarnamalya Ganesh16 of Chennai have
reconstructed Gauṇḍali (also known as Gonḍali), a prominent practice of dance of the
deśī tradition. This research has taken inputs from the research papers by these
scholars.

Guru Sundari Santanam published her book ‘108 Neo deśī karaṇas: A
sequential link’ in 2013 based on her research. It gives a detailed account of the
reconstruction of 72 new karaṇas created by her and the existing 36 utpluti karaṇas as
mentioned in Saṅgīta Ratnākara. The newly created 72 karaṇas are born out of her
creativity and expertise in dance. In addition, the 36 utpluti karaṇas described by the
ancient authorities are modified to a large extent in her reconstruction to give aesthetic
appeal. This researcher has made detailed study of the regional tradition, deśī karaṇas
and their components during her M.Phil. study at Jain University in 2011-2012 and
the dissertation titled ‘Retracing of Deśī Karaṇas through the Texts and Sculptures of
Karnataka’ was awarded M Phil in 2012. As part of the above research, deśī karaṇas
and their components such as sthānakas and cārīs were reconstructed on the basis of
textual and sculptural evidences. Authoritative texts on the regional tradition such as
Mānasollāsa, Saṅgīta Ratnākara, Lāsya Rañjana and Nartana Nirṇaya were studied
for this research work and dance sculptures of Hoysala and Vijayanagara period
temples were extensively documented and examined for this purpose.

With the above description it can be stated that a small number of scholars
have contributed to the knowledge field related to the textual and sculptural study of
the mārga and the deśī tradition of dance. After the survey of the research carried out
in this area, it has come to the notice that not much research has been done to identify

13
Periṇi Siva Tāṇḍavam and Andhra Nāṭyam. Nataraja Ramakrishna. Hyderabad. 1990
14
Perini and Gaundali by Tulasi Ramachandra. 2010. Mysore.
15
‘Gauṇḍali- A critical Study and Reconstruction’. Research paper by Radhika Nandakumar in ‘Classical
dance heritage of Karnataka’. Ed. Nandagopal Choodamani. 2011 published by Bharatagama Parishat:
Bangalore.
16
Swarnamalya reconstructed Gauṇḍali as part of her research on Tanjore dance traditions. Her thesis
titled ‘’ was awarded with PhD by Madras University.

15
and understand the contribution of the deśī tradition to the present-day classical dance
traditions of India. Hence this study was taken up to address such requirement which
would support us to inquire into the continuity in the development of Indian dance
after tenth century in terms of kinetics of movements. Also a broader horizon is
required to include several texts that elaborately speak on the development of Indian
dance through centuries. This will also help us to identify that significant corpus of
movements and stances that are present in chosen classical dance traditions were
actually codified under the deśī tradition category by medieval authorities on dance.

1.6 Literature Review

Scholar K V Ramachandra published series of scholarly articles in reputed

magazines and newspapers in the early part of 20th century. He was the first Indian
scholar to state that the karaṇas are not mere postures but cadences of movements.17
The very next year, in 1936, the ‘famous trio’ from Annamalai University Venkata
Narayanaswami Naidu, Sreenivasulu Naidu and B.Venkarangayya Pantulu
18
published the translation of ‘The Tāṇḍava Lakṣaṇam’, the fourth chapter of
Nāṭyaśāstra consisting of description of 108 karaṇas. Their work ‘The Tāṇḍava
Lakṣaṇam: The Fundamentals of Ancient Hindu Dancing’ generated a great interest
among artistes, researchers and connoisseurs with respect to the movement techniques
that govern Indian classical dances. Sanskrit scholar V Raghavan has enriched dance
scholarship in India with his scholarly books and papers on dance. He has discussed
about karaṇas in ‘Bharatanāṭyam’ (1959) and ‘Indian Classical Dances’ (1963) in
detail. In addition to scholarly papers on various aspects of Indian dance this erudite
scholar edited the 13th century text Nṛttaratnāvali of Jāyasenāpati.

While drawing an analogy between dance and language eminent scholar V Raghavan
writes, “The development of dance and their different forms and variations could be
easily understood when we consider the linguistic analogy. The development of
Indian languages is divided into three clear time periods where we get to see a smooth
transition from one to another and they are called as primary, secondary and tertiary

17
http://yabaluri.org/ TRIVENI/CDWEB/DanceTraditionsofSouthIndiamay35.htm2 Triveni, January–
February, 1935 downloaded on 16/11/2011
18
Tāṇḍava Lakṣaṇam Or The Fundamentals of Ancient Hindu Dancing by V N Naidu, S Naidu and
Pantulu B V. New Delhi, Munshiram Manoharlal. First published in 1936and reeprinted in March,
1971.

16
Prākṛta. In each of these periods there was the literary standard dialect and other
various spoken dialects. The word Prākṛta means common as opposed to Samskṛta,
the polished or cultured dialect of literature. About eleventh century when the
development of Sanskrit started declining the literature it boasted of and the total
dependence of the culture and the religion on it gave it a unique position among the
languages of India. Even after Sanskrit and Prākṛta became totally independent
languages the borrowing of Sanskrit words went on”. (Raghavan 1975:63)

American mythologist and writer Joseph Campbell analyses mārga and deśī in the
following way: “mārga is derived from the root word ‘mṛg’ which refers to the
footprints left by an animal and you follow that animal. The animal you are trying
follow is your own spiritual self and the path is indicated in mythological images.” He
continues his argument and says “deśī guides you to life and mārga guides you to
inward life. Mārga is the elementary idea and deśī is that which is related to people,
time and space” (Campbell 1990:45). Mārga and deśī both are interdependent. In the
case of dance, they both exist side by side on a canvas and complement each other.

While writing about the deśī tradition, Kapila Vatsyayana opines that
Kathakali of Kerala is bridge between the two forms classified as tribal and folk and
those termed as classical (Vatsyayan 1980:22). Scholar Mandakranta Bose strongly
states that today’s classical dance traditions have borrowed significantly from the deśī
traditions (Bose 2007:268). Choodamani Nandagopal debates that in later centuries
the dance traditions experienced a departure from mārga tradition and paved way for
the interpolation of regional variations which came to be known as deśī (Nandagopal
2012:134).

In ‘Classical Indian Dance in Literature’ Vatsyayana states, “The relationship

of dancing, painting and sculpture, can be analysed from many angles. It can be
studied from the point of view of their identity of purpose, their similarity of content,
and their parallelism in technique, or their mutual borrowing of the finished project.
An attempt has been made here to analyse the similarities in content and form.”
(Vatsyayana 1968: 25)

Choodamani Nandagopal in ‘Dance and Music in Temple Architecture’ states,

“Dance and sculptures are developed and nurtured by divine shade of temples in

17
India. Both these art forms are used as vehicles to express human emotions and
aesthetic achievement. Dance and music inspired sculptors to create images of free
movements and attractive poses. Dance based sculptures and figurines avoided
repetition of motif, stance and provided unique plasticity to images that adorned
temples. Ancient and medieval sculptors have preserved the contemporary forms of
dance through enchanting images. Therefore continuous cross reference to sculptural
material would be absolutely necessary to understand the process of evolution of
Indian dance.” (Nandagopal 1990:80).

R Satyanarayana in ‘Bharatanatya: A Critical Study’ states, “any classical art

in its developing stages is essentially individualistic but acquires the characteristics of
the community in its expressive stages and so ultimately becomes regional and then
national in status, scope and character. The character, essence and purpose of a fine
art is expressed in terms of essential primary symbols, while the specific meanings
and expressions are articulated through endorsed values or resultant values. These two
values contribute in elevating an art to the status of a classical art. Here it may be
made clear that the primary values determine the form and structure of the art; the
derived or ascribed values determine its material or substance.” (Satyanarayana
1968:150)

Researcher Dr Mandakranta Bose has carried out an exhaustive study of the

Sanskritic tradition of Indian dance and drama. She has published several books
which also include certain sections on the deśī tradition of dance. In her book
‘Movement and Mimesis’ she states “the most comprehensive view of dance in India
is one that is derived from Sanskrit textual sources. To reconstruct ancient dances of
India one may have no better guides than these authors. These texts taken collectively
are more than records of a particular state of the art. Majority of these works have
been available for a long time but systematic research on them is a comparatively a
recent development.” (Bose 2007:5)

Hence many scholars have debated upon wide range of topics such as mārga-deśī, and
also multi-disciplinary study of dance, sculpture, texts. Many more authors have made
deliberations and all these writings were consulted before setting out for this research.

18
1.7 Scope and significance of the study

The deśī tradition implies an important stage in the evolution of Indian dance
and it plays a key role in the form and structure of today’s classical dances. With the
outcome of this research we can argue with confidence that the amalgamation of
mārga and deśī traditions later developed as Sādir (todays Bharatanāṭyam), Kucipuḍi,
Oḍissi, Kathakaḷi and Mohiniyāṭṭam dance traditions. Though the contribution of deśī
tradition is immense to the evolution and growth of Indian classical dance forms, the
deśī tradition has not been given due place or credit, which can be of major practical
and academic importance in Indian dance history. This area of research in dance
tosses abundant challenges for further enquiries. There is a good scope, dimensions
and challenges in this subject, which may be taken up for further research. It can be
applied in the study of classical dance traditions of other states and the same can be
possibly extended to the other dance traditions of India and South-east Asia.

Limitation of the study

This research is based on the textual references and sculptural evidences.

Apparently it draws on several interpretations while analysing a sculpture. A sculpture
is a frozen movement at a given space. The movement represented in a sculpture
could be the beginning or one of the intermediary stages or the final stage of a karaṇa.
At times, it is a tough task to assign a single sthānaka or cāri or karaṇa name to a
sculpture. Another limitation of this research work is that the study is restricted to
textual, sculptural and the practicing classical dance traditions South India and
Odisha. In addition, this study focuses only on the static and dynamic elements of
dance and not on fully choreographed dance sequences.

1.8 Research questions

 This research work is an attempt to find answers for the following research
questions- Based on literature and sculptural sources is it possible to identify
the movements of the deśī tradition in Bharatanāṭyam, Kucipuḍi, Oḍissi,
Kathakaḷi and Mohiniyāṭṭam dance traditions?
 Do the postures and movements of the deśī tradition, namely the deśī
sthānakas, cāris and karaṇas mentioned in the treatises reflect the prevailing

19
 classical dance traditions in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Kerala
and Odisha?
 How is the deśī tradition different from mārga tradition? What are the
differences in conceptual, structural and technical planes?

1.9 Hypothesis

While engaging with the above mentioned enquiries this research has assumed
the following hypothesis:

The deśī karaṇas, cāris and sthānakas were predominantly represented and practiced
in the dance traditions of medieval Karnataka, Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh,
Telangana, Kerala and Odisha as reflected in texts and sculptures. The structure and
content of the existing tradition of classical dances of above mentioned regions have
the elements clearly derived from the deśī tradition. On the basis of textual and
sculptural evidences, the deśī dance elements are subject to the identification and
possibly be reconstructed and brought into the prevailing and practising dance form.

1.10 Literature Sources

India is fortunate to have rich wealth of treatises and manuals on dance. These
works offer a great scope for studying and understanding the evolution and
development of Indian classical dance as an art form. Original Sanskrit texts, treatises
and manuals on dance that provide information on the deśī tradition are the primary
sources for this research. The following texts composed between 12th and 18th CE are
the primary sources for this research-

1. Mānasollāsa of Someśvara, 2. Saṅgīta Ratnākara of Śārṅgadeva,3. Nṛttaratnāvali

of Jāyasenāpati, 4. Saṅgīta Samayasāra of Pārśvadeva, 5. Nṛtyādhyāya of
Aśokamalla, 6. Nartana Nirṇaya of Pundarīka Viṭṭala, 7. Abhinaya Chandrika of
Maheśvara Mohāpātra, 8. Saṅgīta Nārāyaṇa of Puruṣottama Miśra composed at the
time of King Gajapati Nārāyaṇadeva, 9. Bālarāma Bharata of Bālarāma Varma, 10.
Saṅgīta Darpaṇa of Dāmodara.

In addition to the above list, Saṅgīta Makaranda of Veda (17th century), Lāsya
Rañjana of Simhabhūpāla which is a 16th century treatise on dance in Kannada, Pañca

20
Marabu of Arivānār, an ancient Tamil text, the date of which is debatable and several
related texts also have been studied in detail.

Mānasollāsa or Abhilāśitārta Cintāmaṇi

The deśī tradition was first described in detail by Abhilāṣitārta Cintāmaṇi or

Mānasollāsa composed in early 12th century CE. This encyclopaedic text attributed to
Kalyāṇa Cālukyan King Someśvara III is an important work because it chronicles the
medicine, sports, iconography, culture, arts, science, economy, religious practise and
social structure of medieval Indian society. There are five vimśatis in the text and each
vimśati consists of twenty adhyāyas or chapters. In total, the text has hundred
chapters. One of the adhyāyas, nṛtya vinoda, is devoted to the study of the art of
dance which is considered as a part of the study of entertainment modes of the royals.
The author gives a detailed account of the regional influence on the mainstream of
music and dance that existed at his time. The 8000 ślokas in the text is a treasured
source of information on various topics and the chapter of interest for this research is
the Nṛtyavinoda. The text describes 25 bhūmi and 14 ākāśa cārīs and 21 deśī
sthānakas. In addition it gives a list of 18 deśī karaṇas.

Saṅgīta Ratnākara

Another writer from Karnataka province who occupies a seminal position in

the history of Indian dance is the 13th century author Śārṅgadeva. His Saṅgīta
Ratnākara is considered as the most important work on music and dance, after
Bharata’s Nāṭyaśāstra. The merit of Śārṅgadeva lies in the fact that, besides the
mārga technique he has incorporated the details of regional technique. He indicated a
remarkable modification in dance that was strictly adhering to the mārga tradition
earlier. Śārṅgadeva described the development or inclusion of newer techniques as the
deśī tradition of dance. Thus he clearly demarcated the movements and stances that
were generated from the mārga and deśī traditions. SR identifies the tradition
following the rules of NS as the mārga tradition and the regional modification,
variations and any other development in dance as deśī.

21
 Saṅgīta Ratnākara is also known as Saptādhyāyi as it consists of seven
chapters. The beginning chapters19, numbering to six, give in depth information on
various aspects of music and musical instruments. Nartanādhyāya, the seventh
chapter of SR deals with dance in detail. The most important commentaries on the text
are composed by Simhabhūpāla (Saṅgīta Sudhākara composed in 14th century) and
Kallinatha (Kalānidhi composed in 15th century). The seventh chapter of Saṅgīta
Ratnākara, that is ‘Nartana adhyāya’ is carefully studied for this research as it is a
mine of information on deśī tradition. Saṅgīta Ratnākara (to be referred as SR
hereafter) methodically describes various concepts in both traditions almost leaving
no room for confusion. The text substantially explains deśī sthānakas, cārīs, karaṇas
and different types of deśī dance forms such as peraṇi and gauṇḍali.

Nṛtta Ratnāvali

Nṛtta Ratnāvali by Jaya Senāpati is a significant treatise only on dance. Jaya

was the military commander of the elephant forces (gaja sādhanika) of Kākatiya
dynasty. This powerful dynasty ruled Andhra from 11 th to 14th century and
contributed immensely to the art and culture of the region. NR was written in the
second half of 13th century. Eminent art historian Pappu Venugopal Rao opines that
Kucipuḍi has textual base in Nāṭyaśāstra and Nṛttaratnāvali (Rao 2012: 12).
Nṛttaratnāvali (to be denoted as NR here after) provides a thoroughly organised,
presenting a clear picture of the deśī tradition. It contains four chapters that describe
movements adhering to the mārga style as found in the NS, and four chapters
delineating the deśī tradition prevalent during Jāya’s time.

Saṅgīta Samayasāra

This treatise by Jaina writer Pārśvadeva written during 13th century is an

ancient text which extensively deals with the theory of Indian music. Saṅgīta
Samayasāra (to be denoted as SSS here afterwards) contains ten chapters and the
seventh chapter (Sapthamadhikaraṇam) explains the techniques involved in
delineating deśī elements of dance. In all SSS describes 21 deśī sthānakas, 25 cāris,
and 24 deśī karaṇas. It is very important to note that this text describes ‘tribhaṅgi’ as

19
The first six chapters of SR are Svaragatādhyāya, Raga vivekādhyāya, Prakirnakādhyāya,
Prabandhādhyāya, Talādhyāya and Vadyādhyāya.

22
a deśī sthānaka. Another significant factor to be noted here is that SSS calls cāri as
Pāla and ākāśa cāri as Khecara Pāla. Translation and critical edition of this treatise
in Hindi and Sanskrit has been produced by Ganapathi Shastri Vachaspathi Gairola.
Another Scholar Dr M Vijyalakshmi has translated this in English. Both the critical
editions have been extensively studied for this research work.

Nartana Nirṇaya

This monumental text written in the second half of 16th century is another
most influential, original Sanskrit treatise on Indian music and dance. Its author
Pundarīka Viṭṭala, whose native was Sātanur near Māgadi in Bangalore rural district,
was a profound and versatile scholar in Mughal emperor Akbar’s court
(Satyanārayaṇa 1998:24). Nartana Nirṇaya (to be denoted as NN here afterwards)
gives an exhaustive account of deśī dances along with the movements involved in this
tradition. NN describes 27 sthānakas and 82 cārīs in total and they include both deśī
and mārga varieties. It is interesting that he does not mention deśī and mārga cārī and
sthānaka in separate sections. Instead he mentions a total of 27 sthānakas, out of
which eight are mārga, 19 are deśī and the remaining one is an upaviṣta sthānaka. He
has described 82 cārīs consisting of bhūmi and ākāśa varieties of both mārga and deśī
tradition. NN gives a comprehensive list of deśī dances. Some of the dances in this list
have remarkable similarities with Kathak and Oḍissi and hence this treatise can also
be considered as the early textual source of Kathak and Oḍissi. (Bose 2000: 162)

Lāsya Rañjana

Simhabhūpāla’s Lāsya Rañjana is the only one available Kannada treatise on

dance belonging to 16th century. Lāsya Rañjana (to be denoted as LR herewith)
consists of eight chapters and deals mainly with the āṅgikābhinaya. The author has
followed the dialogue method to explain the different topics related to dance. Here the
queen of Simhabhūpāla asks questions on every topic concerning dance and the king
answers them in a poetical manner. Most part of it is written in ‘Kanda padya’ which
is a Kannada prosodic form which was extremely popular in the ancient and medieval
Kannada poetry. While explaining the deśī tradition and its aspects, Simhabhūpāla
follows Śārṅgadeva.

23
Saṅgīta Darpaṇam

Saṅgīta Darpaṇam of 16th century20 is an elaborate treatise on music (taurya

trika) which is inclusive of vocal music, instrumental music and dance. Dāmodara
belonged to Cherukuri in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. His father Lakshmidhara
was a court poet in the court of Vijayanagara king Tirumalaraya. Author Dāmodara
was patronised by Mughal emperor Jahangir indicates that he was an authority on
music, dance and literature. like Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭala, Dāmodara too had excellent
opportunities for acquainting himself with the musical modes of the South and the
North. The seventh chapter ‘Nṛtyādhyāya’ of Saṅgīta Darpaṇam (to be referred as SD
here after) elaborately discusses regional dance to a great extent.

Abhinaya Caṅdrikā

Abhinaya Caṅdrikā largely follows the tenets propounded in ancient treatises

but it has some unique categories which reflect the regional tradition of dance. Hence
it is a very important text for the study of Oḍissi dance. Like SR, SN and other texts
Abhinaya Chaṅdrika (to be referred as AC here after) says there are two dance
traditions- mārga and deśī. It also considers two other types of presentation- baddha
and abaddha. Baddha is the dance that strictly follows the rules and abaddha is the
dance that does not follow specific rules. The author says udra nṛtya belongs to
baddha nṛtya category because it follows specific rules pertaining to hand gestures,
foot movements, eye movements and songs. In the beginning the author enumerates
the prominent features of udra nṛtya such as nṛtya bheda, nyāsa bheda, pracāra, hetu,
kshetraprakāśana- bhāva and bandha. It also includes karaṇa, cāri, sthānaka and
bhavas.

Bālarāma Bharatam

Bālarāma Bharatam, primarily an elaborate treatise on āṅgikābhinaya is

ascribed to King Kartika Tirunāl Bālarāma Varma of Travancore. It is an important
work on Indian dance and drama from the state of Kerala. The king was not just a
great patron of arts and literature but he himself was a poet and artist with many

20
Saṅgīta Darpaṇa. Critical edition by K L Vasudeva Śāstri. Published by Tanjore Saraswati Mahal
Library. 1955.

24
Kathakaḷi plays to his credit. Easwaran Nampoothiry says that the text contains
several techniques that are in practice in Mohiniyāṭṭam and Kathakaḷi21. It is well
known that King Balarama Varma gave generous support to both Kathakaḷi and
Mohiniyāṭṭam. Unlike other treatises Bālarāma Bharatam (to be referred as BB
herewith) deals only with the aṅga, upāṅga and pratyaṅga movements. It is surprising
that the text which discusses these movements in great length is silent on cāri, karaṇa,
maṇḍala, aṅgahāra etc. However he refers to some sthānaka, cāri, maṇḍalas in the
context of the application of a particular limb movement.

Saṅgīta Makaranda and other texts

The 17th century treatise Saṅgīta Makaranda of Vedasūri is an authoritative

text on dance. Unlike other Saṅgīta texts, its engagement is only with dance. The
author gives exhaustive information on both the mārga and deśī tradition. His
approach in describing the nuances of dance is fresh. He follows Saṅgīta Darpaṇa
while giving his account of dance which means, he first describes dance and then the
contents of it. However he is methodical and organised while describing the patterns
of a dance than Catura Dāmodara. The above mentioned texts and other texts
mentioned earlier in this chapter are further discussed in detail in Chapter II of this
thesis. The texts collectively provide an exhaustive account of the kinetics of the deśī
tradition including the simple movements such as movements of the limbs to fully
choreographed dances. By examining their account, we get the authentic references to
dance traditions that prevailed during their time. This facilitates to examine the
influence of the regional tradition on the existing classical dance traditions chosen for
the study. The relevance of the study stands strong as these authors are all from South
India and Odisha.

1.11 Sculptural sources

Indian classical dances, temple architecture and dance sculptures are

complementary to one another. These art forms are interlinked in social, cultural,
historical and religious streams. There is a strong relationship between dance, temple
architecture and sculptures, the disciplines which deal with space in ways which are

21
E.E.Nampoothiry in preface to ‘Bālarāma Bharatam of Bālarāma Verma’. Published by Kerala
Sankrit Parishat. 1983

25
analogical and complementary. Dance and sculptures are developed and nurtured by
divine shade of temples in India. Both these art forms are used as vehicles to express
human emotions and aesthetic achievement. Dance and music inspired sculptors to
create images of free movements and attractive poses. Dance based sculptures and
figurines avoided repetition of motif, stance and provided unique plasticity to images
that adorned temples. Ancient and medieval sculptors have preserved the
contemporary forms of dance through enchanting images. Therefore continuous cross
reference to sculptural material would be absolutely necessary to understand the
process of evolution of Indian dance. (Nandagopal 1990:80)

Field Work

This researcher was motivated to examine the original sources in the form of
temples sculptures chosen for the study. The research involved extensive field work in
chosen temples of South Indian states and Odisha. The documentation and systematic
study of sculptures, identifying the dance sculptures correlating with the stances and
movements of the deśī tradition as mentioned in original Sanskrit texts was an
important task. Dance sculptures in chosen temples of Karnataka, Tamilnadu, Andhra
Pradesh, Telangana and Odisha states were documented and studied carefully for this
research work. A meticulous field work was carried out at chosen temples in the
following places:

In Karnataka: Kuruvatthi, Lakkundi, Dambal, Haveri, Belur, Halebidu, Baliigave,

Anavatti, Shravanabelagola, Humcha, Hampi.

Tamilnadu: Kanchipuram, Kumbhakonam, Darasuram, Chidambaram, Tanjore,

Virinjipuram, Srirangam.

Odisha: Bhubaneswar, Udayagiri, Khandagiri, Puri and Konark.

Kerala: Thiruvananthapuram, Thodeekalam and Padmanabhapuram Palace

Andhra Pradesh and Telangana: Warangal, Hanumakonda, Tadipatri, Lepakshi and

Ramappa.

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Secondary sources

Some of the secondary sources are listed below:

1. Eminent scholar Kapila Vatsyayan’s books on various branches of Indology

contains valuable information and her critical thoughts on Indian classical dance, art,
temple architecture, sculptures, theatre, philosophy of art, symbolism etc. Classical
Indian Dance in Literature and Arts, The Square and the Circle of Indian arts, The
Concept of Time in Indian arts, The concept of Space in Indian arts, Arts of Kerala
Khsetram, The Traditional Theatres of India, Bharata: The Nāṭyaśāstra, Dance in
Indian Painting are referred extensively for this research work.

2. Scholarly books written by senior art historian Choodamani Nandagopal gives a

comprehensive view of the dance tradition, sculptures, literature, epigraphy of
Karnataka. Some of her books such as Dance and Music in Temple Architecture,
Classical Dance Heritage of Karnataka and Shile- Kale are important secondary
sources for this study.

3. Renowned researcher Mandakranta Bose gives a comprehensive view on the

textual tradition of dance in India in her books. She has published critical analysis of
Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭala’s Nartana Nirṇaya and Saṅgīta Nārāyaṇa (Vol I and II). Some of
her books referred for this study are Speaking of Dance: The Indian Critique,
Movement and Mimesis and Critical Editions of Sanskrit Texts on Music and Dance

4. Scholarly books that give a critical analysis: These books, written by scholars and
subject experts, are based on primary source data and they analyse, critique, report,
summarise, interpret and restructure the data from primary sources. Sanskrit scholar V
Raghavan, legendary dancer Padma Subrahmanyam, guru and researcher Kanak Rele,
R Sathayanarayan, Nirmala Panicker, D N Pattnaik, Mohan Khokar, Phillip Zarilli,
Maya Das, Sunil Kothari, Manorama Hejmadi, Tulasi Ramachandra, Kumkum
Mohanthy, C R Acharya, Lakshmi Vishvanathan are some of the subject experts and
researchers whose books have been referred for this research.

4. Magazines and journals: Research journals, both print and online, such as South
Asian Dance, Dance research, Journal of Sangeet Natak Academy, Music Academy

27
Journal, Vivekanada Patrika, Sruti, Narthanam, Narthaki, JSTOR etc. which publish
research papers on dance. These papers give inputs regarding the issues faced by a
dance researcher and the tools and methods they used to deal with such issues. These
papers were downloaded from different websites and the details of the same are given
as and when required in the body of the thesis.

5. Other sources: Published theses available on UGC website Inflibnet and various
other universities have been referred. Some of the online sources are also consulted
for this research.

The necessary data gathered from the above mentioned primary and secondary
sources are analysed systematically and accurately.

1.12 Methodology

This research uses an art historical framework employing traditional analysis

and an information-based approach with a critical viewpoint. Conscious attempt will
be made to analyse all the sources critically before projecting their findings. The
proposed study will adopt the methods and techniques of qualitative research analysis,
extensive field work, documentation of sculptures and interpretative analysis. This is
a three-fold study consisting of the textual study, sculptural analysis, interpretation,
reconstruction of the dance units described in texts and their application in present day
dance traditions. Methodology involves text and sculpture based reconstruction of the
elements of the deśī dance tradition and the examination of the practicing tradition of
classical dances of South India and Odisha for the presence of these elements.

The methodology followed in this research consists of following four steps:

Step I- Textual study and interpretation

It is a three dimensional study involving the mūla or śāstra, anvaya and

prayoga. Here mūla is the textual and other sources, anvaya is the application and
interpretation of the mūla into an aesthetic experience and prayoga is the present day
classical dance traditions. As discussed earlier treatises and manuals on dance
composed between 12th and 18th centuries provide substantial information on the
kinetics of the deśī tradition of dance. The analysis of the kinetic patterns in ancient

28
texts is based on the aṅga, upāṅga and pratyaṅga classification of the human body.
The human body is made up of minute anatomical units which function individually
or in combination with other parts. The muscles play an important part in Indian
dance. Āṅgikābhinaya is the leading factor of Indian classical dance. It is delineated
by the movements of the various parts of the body of a dancer or an actor. NS has
divided body parts into two categories and they are aṅgas (major limbs) and upāṅgas
(minor limbs). Mānasollāsa has added another category, pratyaṅga (subsidiary
limbs), to it. Later authorities have followed the same classification although they
disagree in categorising the limbs in one of the above three classes. Dance involves
harmonious movements of aṅga, upāṅga and pratyaṅga and the dancer has to create
an exciting visual effect through articulation of movements. By and large all the dance
forms of India follow the classification of movements given in NS and later texts such
as Mānas, SR, NR, SSS, NA etc.. These texts have further given a detailed list of
postures (sthānakas), leg movements (cārīs) and complex dance units (karaṇas). In
this research focus is devoted to the detailed study of the static and kinetic aspects
such as the sthānaka, cārī and karaṇas of the deśī tradition.

Step 2- Sculptural study and interpretation

In this step the dance sculptures correlating with the deśī dance elements are
studied and analysed. This is the product of the field work methodically carried out at

Figure 1. The flow chart of the Methodology followed in this research

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the select temples of South India and Odisha. Both the static and kinetic elements of
the deśī tradition as represented in the plastic art have been examined in detail. The
correlating sculptures were studied, analysed and interpreted following the rules of
nāṭya and iconography.

Step 3- Study of the contemporary classical dance techniques

This is one of the crucial stages of the research. The techniques involved in the
existing practising tradition of Bharatanatya, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Mohiniattam and
Kathakali dance styles are thoroughly studied. After scrutinising the data gathered
from texts and sculptures, the contribution of the deśī tradition to the present day
dance traditions was studied. This involved the exploration of the present classical
dance techniques with respect to the elements of the deśī tradition.

Step-4: Text and sculpture guided reconstruction

This stage is the culmination of the present research. The movement elements
of the deśī tradition are primarily reconstructed by following the details as given in
lakṣaṇa ślokas. The treatises referred for the reconstruction of the deśī karaṇas and
their elements are Mānas, SR, NR, NN, SSS, NA, LR, AC, SN, and BB. The
reconstructed movements are later cross checked with the sculptures and existing
practising system of Indian classical dance traditions chosen for this study. After
drawing inputs from both Shastra and prayoga and cross checking them with the
sculptures is followed by the secondary reconstruction process.

There are certain features in each classical dance form which are based on
some regional texts or manuals on dance. For example, āṅgikābhinaya of Oḍissi
dance is derived from NS, SR and regional treatises such as Abhinaya Chandrika,
Saṅgīta Nārāyaṇa and Nāṭya Manorama. By studying these texts it can be said that by
the 18th century the deśī tradition of dances were very well established and had
developed into their individual technique. The analysis of movements laid stress on
the movements that are not codified in the NS but in other texts. The authors of these
texts have incorporated and codified the dance practice that was prevalent during their
time.

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 The essence of an art is continuously influenced by the cultural and traditional
values that change and evolve through time. These changes take place due to
modifications in social, political, and religious influences of a society. Such changes
impact all streams of arts, such as dance, music, theatre, painting and temple
architecture. In India, over the centuries several changes have taken place in all the
streams of arts. However the essence of ancient traditions has been percolated to our
times. The influence of earlier traditions in terms of technique can be seen in present
day classical art forms such as music and dance. This research engages in finding out
the impact of the deśī tradition on the form, content and structure of today’s classical
dances.

1.13 Plan of the thesis

The data collected, categorised, documented and researched are brought under
seven chapters inclusive of introductory chapter and conclusion.

Chapter I – Introduction

This is the introductory chapter. It contains the introduction of the concept,

topic and key concepts in the thesis such as mārga, deśī, nṛtya, nṛtta, nāṭya etc. It also
contains research questions, aim, hypothesis and other information crucial to this
research work. The importance of the study and earlier work done in the field are also
dealt here. The methodology adopted is pointed out. Importance of the regional
tradition is also highlighted.

Chapter II- Kinetics of deśī karaṇas as given in texts

Second chapter is devoted to the extensive study of the original treatises and
manuals of dance. This thesis makes an in-depth study of body kinetics of the deśī
tradition as codified in treatises and manuals of medieval period. The textual sources
of Indian classical dances composed between 12th and 18th century are focussed here
and the texts studied systematically for this purpose and details pertaining to the deśī
tradition are collated and scrutinised. Texts that are important for the study of the deśī
tradition are focussed here. Medieval period texts such as Mānasollāsa, Saṅgīta
Ratnākara, Saṅgīta Samayasāra, Nṛtta Ratnāvali, Saṅgīta Makaranda, Sangita

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Darpana, Nṛtyādhyāya etc. are examined. The deśī tradition categorized by these texts
stretch the boundary of dance by providing a greater variety of movements and
postures.

Chapter III- The deśī tradition as reflected in the dance sculptures of South
India and Odisha

There is a strong relationship between dance, temple architecture and

sculptures, the disciplines which deal with space in ways which are analogical and
complementary. This chapter is the result of extensive field work carried out to
examine the sculptural representation of the deśī dance tradition in images of temples
across Karnataka, Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Odisha. The
chapter reviews, analyses important dance sculptures in chosen temples. The chapter
gives a descriptive and systematic study of the sculptures. The sculptures correlating
with the deśī karaṇas and their elements are discussed in detail. The chapter includes
the plates of the sculptures matching the description of deśī karaṇas, cārīs and
sthānakas given in the texts studied in the previous chapter.

Chapter IV- Contribution of the deśī tradition to present day classical dance
forms:

After the examination of deśī movements on the basis of the evidences given in the
texts and sculptures, the exploration has been done to identify these movements in the
practising tradition of dance. This chapter focusses the attention on the āṅgikābhinaya
aspect of the prevalent tradition of classical dances. The chapter contains an
investigation of movements in Bharatanāṭyam, Kucipuḍi, Mohiniyāṭṭam, Kathakaḷi
and Oḍissi that are arguably sprung from the deśī tradition. The exploration is based
on keen observation and informal discussion with performers and gurus of the
existing practising traditions of the above mentioned dance forms. Technical features
of each tradition such as postures, aḍavus and related movements are given attention
here. This will also help us to recognise that significant number of movements and
stances that are present in the above mentioned classical dance traditions were
actually codified by medieval authorities on dance.

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Chapter V- Reconstruction of deśī karaṇas and their elements

In this chapter attention is given to the reconstruction of the karaṇas

and their elements of the deśī tradition. The chapter is the culmination of the present
research which aims at the possibility of incorporating the deśī karaṇas and their
elements in the repertoire of present day classical dance. Based on the data collected
from textual sources, the deśī karaṇas are reconstructed and cross-checked for
authenticity in temple sculptures. The fifth chapter is the extensive study of deśī
karaṇas with a subjective experience of performing them and exploring the possibility
of applying them in the existing prayoga of classical dance. Honest attempt has been
made to understand and follow the features of the movements as given in texts and
also by considering the sculptural evidences. The chapter includes the procedure of
reconstruction, possible usage of the reconstructed elements and the plates pertaining
to reconstruction.

Chapter VI - and Conclusion

This is the concluding chapter in which an attempt is made to point

out the significance of the deśī tradition. The deśī tradition contributed for the prolific
movement of Indian classical dance to find place in all geographical entities of the
country. Deśī must have been originated, evolved and transmitted through the
common people. Its relationship with the common people is deep, multiple and multi-
layered. It is not just entertainment. It carries within itself the entire regional culture
with all its social and religious institutions. This chapter also includes the important
findings of this research in the concluding part.

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