Technique and Grammar
Bharata Natyam, like all classical dances, has a very evolved technique
and grammar. The human body, as in all Indian dance, is regarded
as a mass which can be divided into equal parts, if one were to imagine
a line running vertically down the centre from head to toe.
The Bhangas or the Body Postures
Moving away from and towards this central axis determines all movement. There are different ways of controlling body weight.
Sama-bhanga |
Abhanga |
Ati-bhanga |
Tri-bhanga |
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When one puts both feet on the floor with weight balanced on both feet equally |
When the weight is more on one foot with a slight movement or deflection away from the centre |
When head, torso and limbs move in directions opposed to each other |
When there is an extreme deflection away from the center with a strong hip bend |
In Bharata Natyam, as in most Indian dance, the body weight is pressed down to the floor, unlike ballet where one raises body weight above the floor to create a light feeling. It is always the joints which dictate movement in Bharata Natyam. The muscles follow where the joints lead. The neck, shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, waist, knee and ankle joints are all involved and when one moves a joint, the movement that emerges makes a clear line.
In all movement, the body is conceived in three units. The head forms the first unit and lateral movements of the head with the neck joints are common. The torso is treated as the second unit and is hardly ever broken up into the upper or the lower torso. The limbs (both upper and lower) form the third unit. The upper limbs (hands) follow the lower limbs and weave circles and lines in space.
Arai-Mandi
While standing in the sampada stance (both feet together, “at ease” position),the body is erect and is neither loosely relaxed nor too tautly held. Then one turns the feet sideways and squats in a knee bend or plié, with both knees turned outwards. This stance is called Arai-mandi. This is the most important stance in the dance and takes long hours of practice to master. In Bharata Natyam, the body is constantly achieving a series of triangles in space. This is the most significant stylistic feature of this dance form.
Tattu
How one uses the feet is very important. The foot stamping the floor with weight equally placed on the entire foot is called tattu. One also establishes ground contact with just the heel, and the rest of the foot raised, or with just the toes with the heels raised.
Adavus
A whole unit of movement where feet, knee, torso, arms and hands move in a coordinated pattern is called an adavu. These adavus form the basis for the grammar and technique in Bharata Natyam and they have to be learnt as a series of exercises throughout the first year of training. Only after these are mastered can the dancer learn full-fledged items of dance. All the adavus are symmetrical, with movements repeated on both sides of the body. Each adavu is set to certain rhythmical syllables which are sounds with no meaning, but when recited are related to certain movements.
Teermanams and Sollus
When several adavus are strung together to make a sustained dance sequence, it is called a teermanam. In Bharata Natyam, teermanams have the rhythmic syllables (called 'sollu') recited by the conductor as she wields the cymbals. The conductor forms a very important part of the accompaniment for the dance. Usually the Guru recites the sollus. but one can also have a specialist in Nattuvangam (art of recitation of teermanams) playing the role. This specialist is called a Nattuvanaar.
Nritta, Nritya and Abhinaya
Bharata Natyam has two broad classifications called 'Nritta' (pure technical dance) and 'Nritya' (the narrative form derived from adding abhinaya, or storytelling mime, to Nritta).
Nritta |
Nritya |
Abhinaya |
Dance numbers or 'Nritta' items are purely decorative and they exhibit the beauty of form, grammar and technique in the dance. Here rhythm and movement are ends in themselves and there is no thematic element involved. It is what is technically known as 'pure dance'. |
'Nritya' items on the other hand are built around a theme and the dance narration involves intricate hand gestures and facial expressions which help communicate the message to the audience. |
The method of conveying the words of the song through mime and hand gestures is called Abhinaya. Abhinaya and Nritta combine to make Nritya. Abhinaya, again a highly specialized part of the dance, comes from the total involvement of the dancer, body and mind. |
Hand Gestures and Their Symbolisms
Hand gestures play a very special part in Bharata Natyam, as they do in all the Indian classical dance styles. There is a vocabulary of hand gestures which are called hastas. In the Nritta items, hand gestures are an ornamentation, giving the dance more visual beauty, but in the Abhinaya items when the words of the song are interpreted by the dancer through mime, the hands play a major role. Each hasta stands for certain ideas and the language of hastas is so complete that even ideas like father, mother, and other relationships, cardinal directions, sun, moon, a wave, a door opening and closing, can by portrayed.
Nava-rasas
With the help of hand gestures and facial expressions, the dancer creates different moods which are called 'Rasas'. The rasas are categorized under nine expressions referred to as nava rasas (nine rasas).
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