Bharatnatyam and the essential aspects of the art form

There are four types of abhinaya in bharatnatyam- angik, bachik, swastik, and aharya. two dharma- lokdharma and natya dharma,five asanas- padmasanam, singhasanam, yogasanam, veerasanam and sidhasanam, three vangees(gesture) - sama, lalita and balita.and three types of "angaveda"- "karana", "angahaar',and "mudra". In this dance format main rasa is "shringaar""Tandava" and "lassya" of this dance came from the 'shringaar" rasa. there is also a great deal of visual evidence of this dance form in paintings and stone and metal sculptures of ancient times. In the Chidambaram temple, there is a series of bharatnatyam poses, inscribed in stone as it were , by the sculptor.


                                  Music plays an important role in Bharatnatyam. The chief musical instruments used in Bharatnatyam are the Mridangam and a pair of Cymbals. The cymbals provide the timing and the Mridangam provides fractional measures of the broad beats. The dancer follows both. A tambura is also used to provide the scale for the refrain. The musical instruments used are Mridangam, Manjira, Vina, Violin,Kanjira, Surpeti, Flute,Nafaree, Sarangee, Venu,and Tanpura , etc. The costumes consist of a richly embroidered dhoti of silk for both male and female dancers. There is a pleated or frilled cloth hanging from the waist to the knees which is laced over the Dhoti.  

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