Odissi
Odissi is one of the six classical dances of India, which originated in the Orissa state of India, where it developed in the temples there. The rhythms, Bhangis, and Mudras used in Odissi have a distinct stye of their own. It is a highly passionate, ecstatic, and sensuous dance form.
There are three systems of Odissi dance:
- Mahari -which has its roots in the Devadasi tradition.
- Nartaki -which developed in the royal courts.
- Gotipau -where young boys dress up like girls and enact female roles.
History of Odissi
Odissi has a history of over two thousand years. From archaeological evidence, Odissi can be called the earliest dance style of India. Its antiquity has been dated to a statue found in the Ranigumpha at Udaygiri, Orissa, dating to the 2nd century BC. Just like other southern Indian dances, Odissi has its start in the devadasi tradition. Odissi was born in the temples of Orissa. It was at first preformed by the devadasi as a form of prayer and worship. Around 1600 AD, male dances in female attire, called Gotipuas, gained prominence. Before the 17th century, Odissi was a respected dance form, and had the support of local leaders and nobles. Royalty also were expected to be accomplished dancers. After the 17th century, Odissi fell in favor when the dancing girls were thought of as prostitutes. After India gained its independence from Britain, there was a push to revive the classical Indian dances. Some of those who helped popularize Odissi today are Deba Prasad Das, Mayadhar Raut, Pankaj Charan Das, Mahadev Rout, Raghu Dutta and Kelu Charan Mahapatra. Overtime, it has become one of the most popular traditional dance form of India.
Features
One of the unique features of Odissi is its notion of Tribhangi. The notion of Tribhangi is that it divides the body into three parts: head, bust, and torso. This concept has created the very characteristic postures which are more twisted than those of other classical Indian dances. Because of this posture and characteristic shifting of the torso, Odissi is a hard stye to execute and master. But when it is mastered, you have a very graceful and lyrical dance.
Mudra is a term that means 'stamp,' and is a hand posture which suggest things.
Themes of Odissi are almost always religious, and mostly revolve around the love between Radha and Krishna.
Odissi is considered a dance of love, joy, and intense passion, which is pure, divine, and human.
Like other classical Indian dances, Odissi has two facets: Nritta, or non-representational dance, where ornamental patterns are created by using body movement; and Abhinaya, or stylized mine, where hand gestures and facial expressions are used to interpret a story or theme.
A typical Odissi recital will contain at least one or two ashtapadis (which is a poem of eight couplets) from Jayadeva's Gita, which is a book written in Sanskrit which details the love between Krishna and Radha.
Odissi jewelry consists of gold and silver jewelry, most notably a crown worn on the head.
Repertoire
Mangalacharan
This marks the entrance of the dancer onto the stage. The dancer invokes the blessing of Jagannath for an auspicious beginning to the performance. Then the dancer offers salutation to Mother Earth, the teacher, the accompanists, and the audience. It is then followed by a prayer to the Almighty.
Batu Nritya
It is a pure dance offered in honor to Batuka Bhairava. This dance item is full of sculpture like poses which describe such actions as the playing of the drum, veena, flute, and cymbals. Intricate rhythmic patterns are elaborately worked out in different passages of a refrain. No song or recitation is allowed in the accompaniment.
Palavi
Is a pure dance which implies elaboration; an exposition of both the dance and the accompaniment music. The graceful movement of the dancer's form is supported by the intricate rhythm of the music. Thus the palavi gradually unfolds the raga which it is based on.
Abhinaya
Is expressional in nature, expressing a deep emotion expressed in either song or lyric. In Odissi, this item has been danced to the poetry of Jayadeva's Sanskrit love poem, the Gita Govinda. The abhinaya item has sometimes been danced to Oriya lyrics composed by Kavisurya Baladeva Rath, Gopal Krishna Pattnaik, and Banamali Das, who are three venerated poets of Orissa, and others. It is set to a slow tempo, and the dancer described an emotion through expressive mime -those being glances, hand gestures, movements of the body, and facial expression.
Moksha
Moksha in Hinduism means the escape from the endless cycle of birth and rebirth and integration into God. Paralleling this concept, in Odissi, moksha refers to the final item of the repertoire, where it signifies the dancer's total surrender to God. A fast tempo pure dance sequence is preformed to the accompaniment of a recitation of rhythmic syllables which are played out on the mardala. Then follows an invocation to the goddess Shakti, praying for the universal wellbeing of Humanity and a harmonious co-existence.