A country with such dynamic history and culture, it is no surprise that India has a rich history of performances, which is defined to “mark identities, bend time, reshape and adorn the body, and tell stories” (Schechner 32), many being part of the Indian classical dance. This includes Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Manipuri, Mohiniyattam, Odissi, Sattriya and Bharatanatyam. Bharatanatyam is presumably the oldest classical dance heritage of India but is not in danger of dying out due to the ability to adapt to changes over the years. Bharatanatyam was initially a solo dance performed by only women which was held in Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu where the performance is usually accompanied by a singer and music. The dance is comprised of three main aspects; technical dance, expressional dance and dramatic storytelling. The dance tells the story of the thousands of verses Hindu text, making the dance a sacred performance. Bharatanatyam was originally practiced by devadasis or women who were married to the Gods in the temples. Nevertheless, over time, the performance of Bharatanatyam has changed where performers are not only women and not only the wives of Gods can perform it. The venue where the dance is performed has also been shifted from just the temples to theatres, arts venues and even the streets. From observation, I once watched a Bharatanatyam performance on the streets outside a mall in Singapore during the Deepavali period and once at Esplanade. Beginning from something so sacred and only for the Gods, the dance has now been presented in a different manner, where there are other audiences involved. With sacred rituals being associated with expressing or enacting religious beliefs (Schechner 53), does Bharatanatyam still hold a sacred meaning to the performance when not performed in a temple?
Bharatanatyam has many dimensions that makes up the dance, such as the body movements, facial expressions, hand gestures, footwork, costumes and music. Even though in recent years where Bharatanatyam is not only performed in temples, scared rituals are still present through the movements, also asserted by Balasaraswati who mentioned “Dancing to the padam is akin to the juncture when the cascading lights of worship are withdrawn and the drum beats die down to the simple and solemn chanting of sacred verses in the closeness of God” (199). Therefore, despite the dance being held outside of a temple, Bharatanatyam is still a sacred performance as it is still a form of worship for the holy divine as the music used during the performance also adds to the structure of a sacred performance as asserted by Balasaraswati as “Devotional songs are, of course, necessary” (200). Shea also mentioned that “The sung poetic text that accompanies Bharatanatyam choreography rests on the conventions of bhakti, or devotionalism, which center on the worship of deities in personal, emotional terms” (26) which means that even the music in the dance is sacred. This shows that the ritualistic music element of the performance is required to ensure that the Bharatanatyam performance is scared, no matter where it is performed at.
Other than music that accompanies the dance, the movements that the performers portray allow them to share a story, which plays a huge role in Bharatanatyam. A Bharatanatyam dancer is constantly telling a story which is narrated by dramatic movements, through the eyes, body and gestures. The different gestures and rituals signify different meanings which all add up to tell the story through the dance. The ritualistic movements in the dance brings out the spiritual element of the performance. As said by Shea (26), “The mudras, or hand gestures, used today accord in both shape and meaning with those described in the Natyasastra, a Sanskrit dramaturgical text”. Since the mentioned text is believed to be written by mythic Brahman sage and priest, Bharata (Gorlinski), the text is considered to be a sacred text which adds to the element of ritual in the performance. Therefore, even if the performance was taken out of the usual premise of a temple, the function of the performance remains the same; which is to worship the Gods and tell the story of some holy Hindu verses which then shows that Bharatanatyam is still a sacred performance.
In the recent years, Bharatanatyam has been performed in different venues while still maintaining the same purpose of educating the audience through storytelling and to worship the Gods. Despite the change of venue, the rituals involved in making the performance is still relevant, therefore even if the performance is not held in a sacred venue, that does not equate to the Bharatanatyam performance as not being ritualistic or sacred. As pointed out by Schechner, “Ordinary secular spaces can be made temporarily special by means of ritual action” (72), which suggests that there are indeed still sacred rituals held before a performance such as Bharatanatyam. For example, this includes rituals such as cleaning up the performing space for the performers before each show, doing breathing exercises before show and even practicing the choreography multiple times. Most importantly, for Anjali, she suggests that dancers “do a namaskar before you begin. You can even enter the stage with the namaskar done backstage. This is to invoke the blessings of the all those who have helped you in the whole process”. Namaskar is a traditional Indian greeting or gesture of respect, made by bringing the palms together before the face of chest and bowing (Oxford). This suggests that performers do this gesture of respect to achieve blessings which is something sacred and has become part of a ritual as Schechner explains that rituals are just collective memories converted into actions (52). Thus, even if the venue where Bharatanatyam is performed at is not in a holy place like a temple, it does not affect how sacred the performance is due to the existing rituals that happens before every performance.
Bharatanatyam may have started as performances by only female performers in temples but it has now evolved into a performance that I was able to witness with other passersby on the streets during the days leading up to Deepavali, the Hindu festival of lights, also known as Diwali. Despite the change of venue where the performance is held at, the ritual aspect of the performance is still evident in the music, movements and preparations for a Bharatanatyam performance. Thus, sacred rituals are present in Bharatanatyam, no matter where the performance is held.