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Kathak
The Dance
A 3rd century BC Sanskrit shloka (Mithila, late Mauryan period) mentions
Kathak like this :
..anahat...nrityadharmam kathakacha devalokam... Translation:
...sound...and the Kathaks whose duty is dance for the divine peoples
Kathak is one of the major Classical Forms of dance of North India. The
word " Kathak " means to tell a story. The Story of Kathak
goes like this - in the olden days when the patronage shifted from the
temple to the royal court, there came a change in the overall emphasis in
telling stories. It shifted from religious stories to that of entertainment.
Today, the story telling part remains with with it in the back and the dance
holding the primary role.
Primarily, Kathak was associated with an institution called Tawaif. It is
something like Ghesia tradition of Japan.Tawaif was a profeesion
which demanded highest standards of training, intelligence and civility - to
be able to learn Kathak. But then the Britishers came to rule India, giving
Tawaif a bad name. This was the beginning of Tawaif into a downtrail
spiral.
Facets Of Kathak :
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Feet Mudra Of Kathak
In Kathak more importance is given to the Feet Mudra than the Hand
Form. The dances are performed straight-legged and the ankle bells
(ghungaroos) worn by the dancers are adeptly controlled.
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Costume of Kathak Dancers
The costume and theme of these dances are similar to those in the
Mughal Miniature Paintings. In the sixteenth century , the tight
chudidar became the trademark of Kathak Dancers.
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The Dance Form of Kathak
There are three - Gharanas - the school of kathak.These schools
are named as per the geographical areas in which they are developed.
These are Jaipur, Lucknow and Benaras Gharanas.
All compositions in Kathak are performed so that the final step and the
beat of the composition lands on the " Sam " or the
first beat of the cycle. Most compositions also have " bols "which
serve both as mnemonics to thecomposition and whose recitation also acts
as a part of the performance. In addition to these "Tukras"
are also formed to highlight the specific aspects of kathak. The "bols"
can be borrowed from tabla (e.g. dha, ge, na, tirakiTa) or can be a
dance variety (ta, thei, tat, ta ta, tigda, digdig and so on).
Musical Instruments used in Kathak
Bansuri
Dilruba
Ghungharu
Harmonium
Pakhawaj
Santur
Sarangi
Sarod
Sitar
Tabla
Tanpura
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