According to some, this ancient dancing style is said to have originated over 2000 years ago. This form of dancing has been mentioned as given by Lord Brahma to Rishi Bharata and was written in a book named Natyashastra written by him, focusing mostly on Indian drama and aesthetics. India has numerous dance forms practiced from the courtyard of temples and kings’ courts down to the professionally choreographed stage performances as recently as after independence. All the aesthetic concepts of music, rhythm, and expression propagated in Natyashastra find complete coverage in Bharatnatyam. Again, it was left to the stalwarts and exponents of the different forms of dances that brought out to public limelight the traditional dances, more particularly Bharatnatyam.
Rukmini Devi Arundale Rukmini Devi Arundale.
Rukmini Devi Arundale was an Indian theosophist, animal welfare activist, and dancer and choreographer of Bharatanatyam, a traditional Indian dance genre. She became the very first lady candidate to be ever nominated to the country’s parliament in the Rajya Sabha, its upper house. She played a huge factor in bringing back Bharatnatyam into popular culture when it had been banned during British rule. In Chennai, she founded the Kalakshetra.She turned a most deplorable and vulgar form of art—Bharatnatyam—into a renowned and esteemed one.
Padma Subrahmanyam
Padma Subrahmanyam Padma Subrahmanyam is an Indian classical ballet dancer in Bharata Natyam. She is also an author, Indologist, teacher, choreographer, and research scientist. She is very famous domestically and internationally; several documentaries and motion pictures have been produced by many countries in her respect like Japan, Australia, and Russia. Subramanyam is a great scholar, innovator, writer, and teacher who created the style of Bharatnatyam. Moreover, she was interested in studying music and did her master’s in Carnatic music.
Mallika Sarabhai
Mallika Sarabhai features as one of the shining stars in the Bharatnatyam galaxy. Having initially worked as a co-director, she ran the Darpana Performing Arts Academy in Ahmadabad, started by her mother. She is also an award-winning choreographer who has composed theater dances and short dances. Moreover, she is a theater actress of some repute and played Draupadi in Peter Brook’s play “The Mahabharata”. Done by none other than the internationally famous space scientist, Vikram Sarabhai, and his wife, classical ballerina Mrinalini Sarabhai, Mallika Sarabhai was born with beauty and supreme intelligence.
Yamini Krishnamurthy
At the age of five, Yamini Krishnamurthy was drawn to dance forms; she moved to Chennai to seek out a guru. She studied at Rukmini Devi’s Kalakshetra after her enrollment. Subsequently, she became known after her debut performance. Later, she did travel all around the world and took up massive unforgettable performances in respect towards her outstanding skills for practicing the profession. She changed the dance style that got lots of appreciation.
Mrinalini Sarabhai
Mrinalini Vikram Sarabhai is an Indian classical dancer, choreographer, and teacher. She founded and presently runs the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts in Ahmedabad. Students here have been involved in training in dance, music, drama, and puppetry. She has trained some 18,000 students in Bharatnatyam and Kathakali and holds several honors, prizes, or citations to her credit for this art.
Alarmel Valli
Valli Alarmel At sixteen-she was invited to perform at the International Dance Festival of the Sarah Bernhardt Theatre De La Ville, Paris and danced Bharatnatyam. Renowned for her fabled grace in dancing, she was regarded as the matriarch of antiquated Pandanallur school of Bharatanatyam.
Alarmel Valli has introduced depth and religiosity to this art form that was rarely witnessed by the performing ensemble of today. She was known as the youngest dancer awarded the Padma Shri and introduced innovativeness into the steps of her dance.
Bala Saraswati
Bala Saraswati The greatest queen of Bharatnatyam has been and is still Tanjore Balasaraswati, known as Bala Saraswati. She was born in Chennai in the year 1918 and made this dance popular all over. The way she tells the story through her face is what distinguishes her from other dancers. Nobody can even match those bright expressions and grace on date. For the various services rendered towards the field, the Indian Government awarded her the Padma Bhushan in the year 1957 and then again with the Padma Vibhushan in the year 1977.
Anita Ratnam
Anita Ratnam is considered among the finest dancers on the Indian subcontinent. Trained in Bharatanatyam, Mohiniattam, and Kathakali dance, she is known as one of the leading choreographers in the whole South. She again enrolled for a postgraduate diploma in dance from Rukmini Devi Arundale’s Kalakshetra. She is a fine Bharatanatyam, Mohiniattam, and Kathakali dancer.
Sonal Mansingh
It is a difficult task to learn one traditional dance form from scratch and master it, but here Sonal Mansingh masters both Bharatnatyam and Odissi dances. She is also the creator of the New Delhi-based Centre for Indian Classical Dances, CICD.
Her genius garnered her several awards and recognitions, including the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1987, Padma Bhushan in 1992, and Padma Vibhushan in 2003. She undoubtedly stands among the greatest dancers of all time.
Sudha Chandran
The story of Sudha Chandran is one of perpetual perseverance and the will to fight against all odds. Although the negligence took her leg, she still bounced back in Bharatanatyam’s world.` This incredible journey inspired millions and showed that with tenacity and passion for dance, anything can be achieved. She is, therefore, a known face in Indian television industry as well.
Conclusion
It is a medium of several expressions. Indian classical dance received interest from the world audience as an art form. In India, there are numerous forms of classical dance that spread across the land with their reasonably well-defined characteristics and style of presentation. Together, the public can pay tribute to the performers who bring Bharatanatyam to life by celebrating the elegance, beauty, and heritage of the art.
