Kathak is a North-Indian classical dancer form. Characterised by sonorous foot-tapping, graceful moves and swift pirouettes, it is a visual and sonic treat. Kathak dates back to 400 B.C when storytellers called kathakars performed in temples and narrated mythological stories through movement and foot-tapping.
Kathak originated in Varanasi but travelled to other parts in North India as well. There are therefore different schools or gharanas of Kathak over India. It was influenced by Hindu mythology and a in Kathak one can find many performances praising the god Krishna.
There is a lot of emphasis on the rhythmic foot-tapping in Kathak and to enhance the sound of foot-taps, dancers wear a string of dancing bells called ghungroo. These make the sound clear and add to the sonic aspect of this dance.
In addition to ghungroo, Kathak dancers wear costumes according to their gharana or school however long twirling skirts (ghagra) or long churidars with a blouse are commonly worn by women and dhotis (baggy trousers) are worn by men. Contemporary kathak costume however experiments with skirts of different lengths and additional accessories like jackets. We used a simple modern kathak costume for this project consisting of a black dress and leggings with accessories.
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| The Krishna pose in Kathak wit the hands symbolising his flute. We used a modern costume for our project. Seen are also ghungroos. |
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