Kathak dance is the prominent classical dance form of Northern India and it can be divided into three schools on the basis of their performance style which are named after Indian cities: Jaipur, Lucknow, Banaras in which they flourished to their peak. Kathak involves intricate foot work, fast spins, stylized movements and subtle facial expressions. The dancer wears beautiful costumes, rich jewelry and bells on our feet which are called ghungroos. Kathak is usually performed live with a variety of Indian instruments.
Kathak Dance is a very popular career choice for many people in India even today. The dance style is very intricate and is not easy to learn. During live professional shows, the accompaniment is the singer, percussionist (Tabla) and the instrumentalist that keeps the tempo (either the harmonium, esraj or sarangi.) The duration of a live solo performance ranges from 45 minutes to 2 hours. The top “gurus” or leaders of Kathak in this day and age are Rajendra Gangani from the Jaipur style and Birju Maharaj from the Lucknow style. Their involvement is the reason there are so many Kathak dancers today and many people know of the art form in its purest form.
– Vaishnavi Panwar
Kathak meets Flamenco:
Kathak Dance Class
Indian Classical Dance: Kathak 