---
title: "Classical & Folk Dance Forms of India for UPSC"
description: "Learn India's eight classical dances and major folk forms, including their texts, regions, gurus and Sangeet Natak Akademi recognition, for UPSC Prelims."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/lessons/upsc-art-culture-classical-folk-dance-forms"
---

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Classical & folk dance forms

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# Classical & folk dance forms

Master India's eight classical dances and major folk forms—their texts, regions, gurus and Sangeet Natak Akademi recognition—for UPSC Prelims and GS-1.

## The Eight Classical Dances

The Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's national academy for performing arts established in 1953, recognises eight classical dance forms. The traditional seven are **Bharatanatyam** (Tamil Nadu), **Kathak** (North India), **Kathakali** (Kerala), **Kuchipudi** (Andhra Pradesh), **Odissi** (Odisha), **Manipuri** (Manipur) and **Mohiniyattam** (Kerala). **Sattriya** (Assam) was elevated to classical status by the Akademi in 2000, making eight. The Ministry of Culture, through the Akademi, applies criteria rooted in the **Natya Shastra** of Bharata Muni (c. 2nd century BCE–2nd century CE), the foundational treatise that codifies *nritta* (pure rhythmic movement), *nritya* (expressive dance) and *natya* (drama), along with *rasa* (aesthetic emotion) and *bhava* (mood).

## Defining Features by Form

**Bharatanatyam** descends from the *Sadir* of the temple *devadasis*; revived in the 1930s by **Rukmini Devi Arundale** (who founded Kalakshetra in 1936) and theorised by E. Krishna Iyer. It uses the *araimandi* (half-sitting) posture and is structured by the *margam* repertoire (alarippu, jatiswaram, varnam, padam, tillana).

**Kathak** is the only major North Indian classical form, evolving from temple *kathakars* (story-tellers) and flowering in Mughal courts. Its gharanas are **Lucknow** (Wajid Ali Shah's patronage, emphasising *bhava*), **Jaipur** (footwork and *tatkar*) and **Banaras**. Pandit Birju Maharaj (Lucknow gharana) was its most celebrated 20th-century exponent.

**Kathakali** is a Kerala dance-drama using elaborate *vesham* make-up (*pacha*, *kathi*, *thaadi*), drawn largely from the Mahabharata and Ramayana, with *mudras* codified in the *Hastalakshana Deepika*.

**Kuchipudi** originated as a Brahmin male tradition in the village of Kuchelapuram; Siddhendra Yogi (15th century) authored the *Bhama Kalapam*. It is distinguished by the *tarangam*, danced on the rim of a brass plate.

**Odissi** is reconstructed from the *maharis* (temple dancers) and *gotipuas* (boy dancers) of the Jagannath temple, Puri; its sculptural *tribhanga* posture mirrors the Sun Temple at Konark. Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra was its modern architect.

**Manipuri** centres on *Raslila* devotion to Radha-Krishna, with the gentle *Lasya* and vigorous *Tandava* (the *Pung Cholom* drum dance).

**Mohiniyattam**, the "dance of the enchantress," is a solo female *lasya* form of Kerala, revived under the patronage of Maharaja Swathi Thirunal of Travancore.

**Sattriya** was created by the Vaishnava saint **Srimanta Sankardeva** (1449–1568) in the *sattras* (monasteries) of Assam and performed traditionally by *bhokots* (male monks).

## Folk Dance Anchors

Folk forms are region-specific and community-rooted: **Bhangra/Giddha** (Punjab), **Garba/Dandiya** (Gujarat, Navratri), **Bihu** (Assam), **Lavani** (Maharashtra), **Ghoomar** (Rajasthan), **Chhau**—a semi-classical martial-masked form of Purulia, Seraikella and Mayurbhanj, inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010.

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