Kuchipudi
Today, let’s know about another dance form of India. It regained its popularity in recent times, though its roots dated between 500 BCE and 500 CE. Kuchipudi classical dance emanated from the village of Kuchipudi in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh. It’s more of a dance-drama performance, with its root in the ancient Hindu Sanskrit text of nary a shastra, which is accredited to Indian theatrologist and musicologist Bharat Muni. The most studied version of the Natya shastra text consists of about 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters. Expressions, bhava, rasa, gestures, acting techniques, basic steps, and standing postures of which are part of Indian classical dances. The tradition of Kuchipudi dance was passed down through generations of Brahmin families in Kuchipudi village and interacted with the temple dance traditions as well as the other drama traditions of South India.
During earlier days Kuchipudi dance was performed once a year and dance were cautiously kept out of reach of Devadasis. The tradition has remained so unbroken that even today in some of the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh, is performed by all-male troupes. However, in modern times women dominated the art.
Kuchipudi dance styles are based on Abinaya Darpan and Bharatarnava of Nadishwara, which are subdivided into Nattuva, Mala, and Natya Mala.
When you look at Kuchipudi dancers, they need to perform different characters, with different makeup and female characters wear ornaments and jewelry like chandra vanki, rakudi, adda basa, etc.. and a long plait decorated with flowers and jewellery Ornaments worn by artists.
Kuchipudi dance styles are based on Abinaya Darpan and Bharatarnava of Nadishwara, which are subdivided into Nattuva, Mala, and Natya Mala. Carnatic music, mridagam, violin, thamburi, and flute are generally used in Kuchipudi dance performances. A flutist is often seen to accompany the music.
The three influential figures in Kuchipudi, during the first half of 12 the century, were Vendantam Lakshminarayana Sastry, Vempati Venkatanarayana Sastri, and Chinta Venkatatanayana. Venpati china Satyam whose efforts to further codify the modern repertoire earned him multiple accolades, including Padma Bhushan.
Bhama kalapam of Sidhyendra yogi is the most popular dance drama. Other commonly performed plays are kritis of Thyagaraja, This dance form has now spread worldwide. China Krishnamurthy excelled in roles like Satyabhama in Bhamakalampam. Shoba Naidu, Hemamalini, Raja Reddy, and Radha Reddy are some of the most renowned Kuchipudi dancers of India.
