WHAT IS BHARATANATYAM?
Sep 2001 Bharatanatyam is one of the most cherished and the most popular of classical Indian dance-forms, not only within the country but also outside it. It is considered the epitome of Indian cultural expression. Lately, Bharatanatyam is also the focus of criticism. It is damned as archaic and irrelevant to the modern times, especially by those who frown on its predominant nayika-nayaka theme. At the same time, even among its practitioners, it is often misperceived as being bound with bhakti alone, while in fact sringara or love has been its dominant motif. Generally,
the practitioners of the dance (choreographers as well as performers)
fall into four broad categories: those content with whatever they have
been taught and staying the course without adding anything of their own;
those adding through their creativity, a minty freshness even to the traditional
repertoire; those exploring new dimensions within the framework of tradition;
and,
of course, the rootless ones of modern times who, not knowing which way
to go, tinker with the art to the point they degrade it. The middle
two categories overlap to
But the criticism, howsoever misdirected, is getting louder and its impact is being felt widely, confusing the multitude's perception of what Bharatanatyam really is. There is an urgent need, therefore, to review the dance-form in depth and clarify the issues. Sruti Editor-in-Chief N. PATTABHI RAMAN has written the following essay as a first step towards resolving the widely spread confusion about what Bharatanatyam really is. He has incorporated in it, besides his own perceptions, knowledge gained from a reading of authoritative texts and consultations with leading practitioners of Bharatanatyam. His approach is analytical rather than normative or prescriptive. Emphasising the need for establishing benchmarks, he has for some time now been advocating that leading scholars, guru-s, choreographers and performers of each of the major Indian classical dance-forms should meet and discuss and democratically reach a consensus on what constitute the core or defining characteristics of each dance-form. It is hoped this article will pave the way for such a consensus on Bharatanatyam- a consensus that will serve as an authoritative Blue Book of guidance to Bharatanatyam teachers, students, dancers and choreographers, as well as to dance reviewers and critics and sources of financial support. What is
Bharatanatyam?
It thrived in the south of India. Then it spread to other parts of the country. Now it is a world art and heritage, flourishing particularly in the Indian diaspora. Its grammar
and aesthetics are today traced by many to Natya Sastra and to later works
like Abhinaya Darpana. However, while we do not properly know what
the dance was like before early nineteenth century, what we know today
as Bharatanatyam has developed from the shape it was given by the Tanjavur
Quartet. And this legacy was preserved in practice mostly by
the guru-s and performers belonging to the Isai Velalar community of Tamil
Nadu.
Bharatanatyam as performed today on the proscenium stage- even in some temple complexes as in Chidambaram- belongs to the category of art dance, even if a given performance is mediocre or worse. The architecture
In a lecture delivered at the Tamil Isai Sangam, Madras, translated from Tamil by the late S. Guhan and reproduced in Bala on Bharatanatyam, a monograph published by the Sruti Foundation (now out of print), the legendary exponent of Bharatanatyam said: << I believe that the traditional order of the Bharatanatyam recital... is the correct sequence in the practice of this art, for revealing the spiritual through the corporeal. The greatness of this traditional recital-pattern will be apparent even from a purely aesthetic point of view. In the beginning, alarippu, which is based on rhythm alone, brings out the special charm of pure dance. The movements of alarippu relax the dancer's body and thereby her mind, loosen and coordinate her limbs, and prepare her for the rest of the dance. Rhythm has a rare capacity to concentrate. Alarippu is most valuable in freeing the dancer from distraction and making her single-minded. The joy of
pure rhythm in alarippu is followed by jatiswaram where there is the added
joy of melody. Melody, without word or syllable, has a special power to
unite us with our being.
The Bharatanatyam recital is structured like a Great Temple: we enter through the gopuram (outer hall) of alarippu, cross the ardhamandapam (half-way hall) of jatiswaram, then the mandapam (great hall) of sabdam and enter the holy precinct of the deity in the varnam. This is the space which gives the dancer expansive scope to revel in the music, rhythm and moods of the dance. The varnam is the continuum which gives ever expanding room to the dancer to delight in her self-fulfillment, by providing the fullest scope to her own creativity as well as to the tradition of the art. Pada-s now follow. In dancing to pada-s, one experiences the containment, cool and quiet of entering the sanctum from its external precinct. The expanse and brilliance of the outer corridors disappear in the dark inner sanctum; and the rhythmic virtuosities of the varnam yield to the soul-stirring music and abhinaya of the padam. Dancing to the padam is akin to the juncture when the cascading lights of worship are withdrawn and the drum beats die down to the simple and solemn chanting of sacred verses in the closeness of god. Then, the tillana breaks into movement like the final burning of camphor accompanied by a measure of din and bustle. In conclusion, the devotee takes to his heart the god he has so far glorified outside; and the dancer completes the traditional order by dancing to a simple devotional verse. >> (As the above passage reveals, Balasaraswati believed Bharatanatyam is grounded in bhakti and that "it is justified in being called a yoga because it is a spiritual discipline perfecting the mind to thought-free serenity.") But the traditional margam is no longer considered de rigueur. In other words, what was once considered the format of Bharatanatyam has lately been modified many a time by all and sundry. It has yielded place to many variations, as well as to dance-dramas and miscellanies presented by groups of dancers trained in Bharatanatyam. Thus, while the margam can be considered most suited to unfold the major dimensions of the dance, it cannot be held that, unless it is used, a Bharatanatyam recital ceases to be one. Bharatanatyam
& religion
Purpose
of Bharatanatyam
Depending on individual perceptions, this subjective experience may yet transcend the aesthetic and may seem religious to some, or spiritual to some others. At least one rasika of music- Peggy Holroyde, an admirer of sitar maestro Ravi Shankar's music making has said, in her book titled The Music of India that her experience of one of Panditji's recitals resulted in an orgasm. Yes, the perceptions of individuals may vary, but this does not alter the fact that, within the framework of Indian aesthetics, the purpose of Bharatanatyam, like that of other secular dance-forms, is to pave the way to an aesthetic experience. Not gender
specific
Since, however, virtually all of the other classical dances of India are also not gender specific, Bharatanatyam does not stand alone in this aspect. Two aspects
These two aspects are, however, not unique to this dance-form alone. Primacy
of music
Balasaraswati's
observation confirms that music is an integral part of dance and not merely
Song-texts or lyrics are essential for the interpretation of songs in Bharatanatyam. For this reason, the song repertoire of Bharatanatyam is for singing, with the mridanga as the main instrument in the orchestra which supports the singer. Recent history has, however, shown that Bharatanatyam is not wedded to a particular kind of music, that is, Carnatic music alone. It is therefore difficult to identify an item as Bharatanatyam by its music alone. Content
& changes in it
The lyrics of a substantial portion of traditional items seek to convey sringara bhakti- devotion through expression of love between man/woman and god; or only sringara- romance between man and woman, though even this last-mentioned relationship has been perceived by many as the yearning of the jeevatma (human soul) for the paramatma (universal soul), obscuring very real romantic liaison between the nayika and nayaka, as in Jayadeva's Geeta Govindam and Kshetrayya's pada-s. The traditional repertoire has been enriched, particularly in recent times, by the addition of numerous items, which, in practice, reflect bhakti alone, as well as items interpreting classical music compositions and folk or popular dances. The repertoire has also been expanded lately to include contemporary themes. Furthermore, the repertoire has been expanded to include compositions in non-traditional languages, like Hindi and its dialects, Marathi and Bengali. Thus, the dance-form has been anything but static in regard to its repertoire; indeed, it has shown a remarkable capacity for absorbing innovations. At the same time, its traditional sringara-focussed items have retained their relevance because they reflect timeless, universal human yearnings. Some present-day dancers may feel they are passe or archaic, but those who are able to perceive and appreciate the inner core and the subtexts of the contents of the traditional repertoire would not disinherit them. They are museum pieces only if the dancers present them mechanically like robots, without contextualising them, without interpreting them creatively and without expanding and further enriching the vocabulary of the dance. Aharya:
costume & ornamentation
Defining
characteristics
By definition, the defining characteristics must be those which set Bharatanatyam apart from other Indian dance-forms- set it apart not momentarily but forever. By the process of elimination, this has to be the technique of Bharatanatyam given expression through the basic stance, the basic postures, the movements, the movement combinations (adavu-s) and gestures (mudra-s). Different guru-s and performers have given stylistic emphases of their own in using the technique, and some have also extended the technique, but there is a corpus which may be said to be unique to Bharatanatyam and which, therefore, taken as a whole, gives it its distinctive identity. This distinctive identity exists, I should note, despite common terminology traceable to Natya Sastra, because in practice the different dance-forms have addressed the subject covered by each of the common technical terms in distinctive ways. This corpus
includes the following:
The above-mentioned technique-based components of the corpus carrying a distinct Bharatanatyam stamp may be said to be the dance-form’s core or defining characteristics. It will be proper to consider as Bharatanatyam only that choreography or performance which retains or uses these core or defining characteristics exclusively. Dancers'
responsibility
Packaging of a performance is a different matter- and a number of options may be utilised to suit personal preferences or performance contexts. The presentation may be long or short; it may or may not follow the traditional margam; it may vary the content; it may use different stage arrangements; it may or may not use special lighting; it may have the dancer wearing non-specific or non-descriptive costume; or it may include in its orchestra instruments not used traditionally. These are among the variables available to a Bharatanatyam dancer in India as well as abroad. But, to qualify as Bharatanatyam, I believe a performance must employ the technique unique to it- without trashing it or watering it down. The dancer has a responsibility to fulfill the expectations of the discerning members of an audience in India, and of the interested innocenti abroad, that what is on offer is the Real McCoy.
A central conception In Indian dance, the human body has been conceived of as a mass, which can be equally divided among the central median. Further movement is determined by the nature of deflections from this median.... What is distinctive in Bharatanatyam is the fact that it conceives of movement in space mostly along either straight lines or triangles. The head forms
the first unit and lateral movements of the head are common. The torso
is seen as another unit and is hardly ever broken up into the upper or
the lower torso. The lower limbs are seen as either straight lines or two
sides of an imaginary triangle in space. The upper limbs either follow
the lower limbs or weave circular patterns along space which is governed
by the lower limbs. It is the latter aspect, along with the use of the
torso as a single unit that gives Bharatanatyam its particularity.
Adavu
Sringara
The sringara we experience in Bharatanatyam is never carnal, never, never. For those who have yielded themselves to its discipline with total dedication, dance, like music, is the practice of the Presence; it cannot be merely the body's rapture. [Bharatanatyam]
is primarily a woman's art. By the very fact of the lover being god, the
union longed for is not of the physical but of the spiritual plane. It
is the yearning of the individual soul for merger with the cosmic soul
that is figuratively expressed in the erotic idiom. Yet the spiritual quality
of Bharatanatyam is not achieved through the elimination of the sensual
but through the seemingly sensual itself, thereby sublimating it.
Sringara means love, but this is not confined to rati sringara. There is bhakti sringara and vatsalya sringara besides rati sringara.... Even in rati
sringara, the erotic element must be refined. In India, even in ideal life,
a certain discipline is exercised in showing our love for another. We don't
generally do it in public, although some people do it everywhere. Same
with art. If the act of kissing is to be depicted, it should be done with
subtlety, artistically. Someone or other may present this act without beauty,
but this should not be construed to mean eroticism is unacceptable.
The Varnam
The varnam provides the fullest scope to the dancer to improvise on a given theme.... In terms of
technique, the dancer has freedom to improvise on the musical note as well
as on the literary word. In the abhinaya portions, the dancer presents
either a word-for-word interpretation or renders through gesture the meaning
of a complete line. She can also present through gestures other images
related to but not contained in the word. In this respect, the varnam calls
for all the imaginative faculties at the command of the dancer, who must
possess a rich literary background. Without this, the dancer would be at
a loss to present the words through the gestures in a variety of ways....
Varna is the most elaborate composition of the dance which calls forth the versatility of the danseuse in pure dance and mime.... The most fascinating
element of the varna is the exposition of the transient moods of love (sanchari
bhava) in mimetic dance. The dancer thus creates a gesture poem of her
own to enlarge the poetic theme of the song.
Is Bharatanatyam
archaic?
The festival threw up a host of interesting topics for classical Bharatanatyam: male chauvinism, eve teasing, dowry, evils of the current education system, the caste and reservation systems, threat of nuclear weapons, AIDS, the population explosion, corruption in politics, bribery, religious fanaticism, secularism, fraudulent godmen, the greed for riches, the Chinese aggression, the Dandi March, literacy, agriculture, mechanisation, industrialisation, environmental degradation, universal brotherhood, abstract lines and forms, etc. To depict the above, some new hasta viniyoga-s were introduced by the dancers.... The dancers proved that they could depict virtually anything in the Bharatanatyam idiom.... Courtesy
SRUTI Issue 203
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