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Kathak Dance

When you analyze the forms of dances in Northern India, Kathak dance will certainly look prominent among all other forms. Kathak is a Sanskrit word which implies a meaning of story. It is an ancient dance where people use to tell stories that also include some sort of dance. Sophisticated hand movements and the fast foot movements are the main part and style of the dance.

As it is a really old Art, so you can clearly see the amalgamation of different cultures that it passed through. There have been colors of devotion and bhagti that has been merged with the colors that it acquired from the Mughal era. When talk about Mughal era, the main thing that brought a change in the whole facet of this dance was the Persian dancers which danced in the Mughal courtyards.

As it is a traditional and old dance, hence, there are some of the ways to learn this form of dance which is classified in the Gharanas. There are three main gharanas for Kathak which are the Jaipur gharana, the Lucknow gharana and the Banaras gharana.

Story told in Kathak in those old times were more of a religious one; however, today it has gained a more of a recreational aspect. You can also experience a lot of musical instruments which are used to create a feel in the Kathak. For instance, Bansuri, Dilruba, Ghungroo, Sitar, Tabla, Tanpura and many of this kind.

The combination of these instruments along with the exotic steps and movements taken by the Kathak dancers, develop a great atmosphere that really needs to be felt by oneself as it is different reading about them compared to be a part of one such performance. The whole thing about his dance form is delicacy, whatever move you take with your hands and feet, it has to look graceful and that is the very soul of the dance. It has regained its popularity in India as now people are getting training for this form of dance from their childhood.