Emergence Dance in India
In India, dance is considered to be divine in origin. The Gods and Goddesses not only take great delight in dance, drama and mime, but many are great dancers themselves. Shiva’s cosmic dance, Tandava is believed to encompass creation, preservation and destruction and this idea has been embedded in Hindu thought and ritual, since the dawn of civilization. The dance of Kali, the dark and fierce Goddess of destruction is very significant.
Dances in india have prospered not only with royal patronage but also among the masses explain,
Krishna is one of the most popular dancing divinities of the Hindus. According to the Natyashastra, Brahma, the creator had created drama. He then took pathya (words) from the Rig-Veda, Abhinaya (gesture) from the Yajurveda, geet (music and chant) from samveda and rasa (sentiment and emotional element) from Atharvaveda to form the fifth Veda, Natyaveda.
The first and oldest of evidences to date are the discovery of the bronze figurine of a dancer from the Indus valley Civilisation excavations at Mohenjodaro and Harappa. Dancing figures are also commonly seen in many primitive cave paintings and sculptures at temples and stupas.
Rasa and Bhava
According to Bharata’s Natyashastra, there are eight fundamental feelings or mental states referred to as Sthayi Bhavas which can be experienced by human beings. Corresponding to these mental states, there are eight Rasas also.
| Sthayi Bhavas | Rasas |
| Delight ( Rati ) | The Eroptic ( Srinagra ) |
| Laughter ( Hasya ) | The Comic ( Hasya ) |
| Sorrow( Soka ) | The Pathetic ( Karuna ) |
| Anger( Krodha ) | The furious ( Rudra ) |
| Heroism ( Utsaha ) | The Heroic ( Vira ) |
| Fear (Bhaya) | The Terrible ( Bhayanaka ) |
| Disgust (Jugupsa) | The Odious ( Bhibhatsa ) |
| Wonder ( Vismaya ) | The Marvellous ( Adbhuta ) |
Margi and Desi
The Natyashastra divides dance into various categories. On one hand, we have the classical dance from such as Bharatanatyam, Kathakali, Kathak and so on and on the other hand, we have dance like Garba, Bhangra, Chhau and so on. Although, these are all dances, they are fall into two distinct categories, i.e. Margi ( Classical ) and Desi ( Folk or region ).