One special period of a history of repeated invasions of India sets it apart from the multitude of classical Indian dances: Kathak is the only Indian dance form to have been directly and deeply impacted by the arrival and rule of northern and central India by the Mughals, an Islamic dynasty from Persia. The name ‘Kathak’ is derived from the Sanskrit word Katha or ‘story’ and from Katthaka or ‘storyteller’, referred to in ancient and medieval Indian literature.īut ‘storytelling’ and temples though its origin may be, Kathak is the one dance that has a singular DNA, as it were.Īn impulse to dazzle us most, with its heart-stopping bursts of rhythmic virtuosity, and to enchant with its delicate, lyrical exploration of romantic, as well as devotional, poetry. That said, of all the classical Indian dances, Kathak is the one that is especially introduced as ‘a storytelling dance’. Kathak is the one classical Indian dance that has a singular DNAĮach ‘style’ (as in ‘Bharatanatyam’ and ‘Kathak’ featured in BBC Young Dancer) has its demanding, characteristic physical vocabulary and repertoire to express this.īut all share a common, dance-theatre heritage that seems to need not only to joyously dance but also to tell stories, about gods and their exploits, what they do in their fanciful realm - and on earth - to their fans and foes!
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