Articles:
Kathak:
Kathak, one of the main forms of classical dance-drama of India, other major ones being bharata natyam, kathakali, manipuri, kuchipudi, and odissi. Kathak is indigenous to northern India and developed under the influence of both Hindu and Muslim cultures. Kathak is characterized by intricate footwork and precise rhythmic patterns that the dancer articulates by controlling about 100 ankle bells. It takes its movements from life, stylizes them, and adds the complex rhythmic patterns. Kathak is danced by both males and females; many of the dances convey moods of love.
https://www.britannica.com/art/kathak
Kathak Dance
Kathak is one of the main genres of ancient Indian classical dance and is traditionally regarded to have originated from the travelling bards of North India referred as Kathakars or storytellers. These Kathakars wandered around and communicated legendary stories via music, dance and songs quite like the early Greek theatre. The genre developed during the Bhakti movement, the trend of theistic devotion which evolved in medieval Hinduism. The Kathakars communicate stories through rhythmic foot movements, hand gestures, facial expressions and eye work. This performing art that incorporates legends from ancient mythology and great Indian epics, especially from the life of Lord Krishna became quite popular in the courts of North Indian kingdoms. Three specific forms of this genre that is three gharanas (schools), which mostly differ in emphasis given to footwork versus acting, are more famous namely, the Jaipur gharana, the Benaras gharana and the Lucknow gharana.
https://www.culturalindia.net/indian-dance/classical/kathak.html
Kathak: A complete dynamic theatre
Kathak is a complete dynamic theater, not compromised to, but rather co-existed in the dance form which has made many more doors open, outside of the academic life of the dancer; myself. Perhaps ‘Devdas’ was the initial propaganda to popularize it, and perhaps the entrancing chakkars or the intimidating fast footwork, taal, was the spark to ignite a Kathak dancer’s fire. Indeed, that would disguise the artist’s realistic form. Perhaps the angarkha fascinated spectators’ pupils as she spun her way into their hearts. This cryptic dance form has been cracked and there is a most complex answer that is only yet to be learned.
Kathak: An art form based on fast footwork and even faster pirouettes, with an element of storytelling or drama. The hastamudras (hand gestures), the poses, and even the walk of the dancer further filters into this narrative. The background music, in vocal or orchestral form, seams together the story that is accompanied by aharya, the artist’s accessories and his / her makeup. And then there is my semantic of dance: The ‘X’ factor; Satvika is the eye movement and the whole feeling conveyed by the dancer. This feeling emanates anonymously from within and reflects through a human’s natural expression. A dancer may forget to be human while dancing and may focus on the technicality of the actual dance. In contrast, when the dancer becomes human, her dance can convey even the most miniscule of stories. The “human” audience is keenly perceptive to such stories because they can relate to the story. This is the aesthetic self -actualization of a dancer.
http://www.narthaki.com/info/articles/art198.html
Kathak- A Classical dance of Northern India
Kathak is the major classical dance form of northern India. The word kathak means “to tell a story”. It is derived from the dance dramas of ancient India. When the patronage shifted from the temples to the royal court, there was a change in the overall emphasis. The emphasis shifted from the telling of religious stories to one of entertainment. Today, the story-telling aspect has been downgraded and the dance is primarily an abstract exploration of rhythm and movement.
https://chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/kathak.html
Kathak: Aesthetics, History and Influence
Kathak is commonly regarded as one of the seven state-recognised classical dance forms of India and is the only one from North India. It is known for its technical virtuosity, fluid movements, footwork, sharp spins and versatile range of abhinaya. Because of its past associations with courtesan dance, performances in courts and intimate spaces like baithaks, Kathak inherits a courtly elegance in its presentation, confrontational and almost flamboyant directness with the audience, and the highly intimate and interactive nature of its performance. This module questions the category of classical and folk by examining the history of this dance form, with a special focus on the history of Kathak from the late 16th to early 20th century. In addition, the module has a wide range of videos, images and interviews with senior Gurus highlighting the rich aesthetics of Kathak.
https://www.sahapedia.org/kathak-aesthetics-history-and-influences
Looking for the origins of Kathak
Although it is commonly accepted that Kathak originated in the temples of ancient India, it is not longer than some 300-400 years back that we find traces of ‘kathak-like’ dances, where the dance resembles the present form it has. It is eventually only in the 19thcentury in Awadh, that the form begins to come closer to its recent shape. The Kathaks family, evidentially from Bindadin Maharaj on, greatly enriches the form, composing nritta and abhinaya compositions, that form a part of not only their repertoire, but also the repertoire of the courtesans, who worked in close association with the Kathaks family, and played a major role in the history of Kathak.
https://www.sahapedia.org/looking-the-origins-of-kathak-journey-the-16th-20th-century
Kathak: Does every gesture have a meaning?
That said, of all the classical Indian dances, Kathak is the one that is especially introduced as ‘a storytelling dance’.
The name ‘Kathak’ is derived from the Sanskrit word Katha or ‘story’ and from Katthaka or ‘storyteller’, referred to in ancient and medieval Indian literature.
But ‘storytelling’ and temples though its origin may be, Kathak is the one dance that has a singular DNA, as it were.
An impulse to dazzle us most, with its heart-stopping bursts of rhythmic virtuosity, and to enchant with its delicate, lyrical exploration of romantic, as well as devotional, poetry.
A Northern Indian Classical Dance Form
eaders are conducted through the 12 sections of a typical Kathak performance that starts with vandana (or slōkam)—a prayer in Sanskrit addressing a god or goddess—and ends with tatkar, which denotes a slapping foot section that consists of bell-and footwork alone. Here, drummer and dancer interact so that “the dancer becomes as though bodiless and made of pure sound.” Brilliant though the tatkar may be, however, the predominant theme of North Indian Kathak dancing (from a Sanskrit word kathaka, meaning “narrator”) lies in the fleeting appearances and longer stories of Radha (a Gopi, or milkmaid) and Krishna (an incarnation of the god Vishnu).
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08949460490273997
Kathak Festival: A Revival of Dance
It is no surprise that Indian classical dance, and kathak in particular, wields tremendous influence on the modern dance scene in India. However, classically trained artists such as Prachi Dixit, Artistic Director of Nupur Dance Academy, yearn for the traditional form’s elegance, lost and reduced in the chaotic world of Bollywood erotica. She wants to reassert the golden era of the dance style in its pure form.
Kathak Festival: A Revival of Dance
Kathak in the United Arab Emirates
TWO BRITISH CHOREOGRAPHERS will be presenting their work in the UAE in February – and interestingly, both were trained in a classical dance style from India: kathak. Both Akram Khan and Sonia Sabri were born and raised in Britain (Khan in London, Sabri in Birmingham), and studied kathak there, and both have gone on to use kathak in their performance work. Does that make their work Indian, or British, or what?
Kathak in the United Arab Emirates
Indian Classical Dance: Kathak 