I have always been fascinated by dance, as a 12-year-old I watched Bollywood movies with classic dance songs and imitated the steps, if I was alone. It is true that I can move well to Punjabi music and regular Bollywood songs, but classical requires training, focus, discipline and not least a teacher "guru". In 1980 and little Fredrikstad there was no guru. Eventually other things became important, but it is one of the things I definitely want to do in my next life, more dancing, singing and music.
(Images borrowed from Google)
The word comes from Sanskrit (the mother language of several Indo-European languages) katha which means a story. Kathak means “to tell a story or a storyteller”. The dance form is one of eight classical dance forms found in India and is widespread in northern and eastern India. Several features are inspired by the Moghul era around the 17th century, when India was invaded by Afghan and Persian rulers. All dance forms were almost seen as divine in the past, the dancer dedicated his life to dance and carried on traditions. The teacher had great respect and was seen as "next to God". They revolved around episodes from the lives of Krishna or Ganesha and it was a great honor to perform in temples, palaces, etc.
(Image borrowed from Google)
The dance is based on taal , the word comes from taali which means to clap. It is the use of the arms and foot stomping that makes up the rhythm. It is based on a 16-step count and requires a lot of concentration on counting and listening to the instrument. In addition to the instruments, the dancer has foot bells. There are small metal balls that make sound when stomping. The costume is Anarkali style, Anarkali was a princess and the style is as you see below. Long dress over tights, long sleeves and of course lots of gold and glitter. Beautiful jewelry, chudiyan bracelets, foot bells and bindi . Fortunately, our youngest daughter has taken after my interest in dance. It is a joy to see the effort, training, commitment and not least the great performances. Which also applies to modern, western dance forms. She is so lucky and is an apprentice to Jayati Banajee who has a bachelor's degree in kathak and is my source for this article.
Here is a picture from a private party where she danced for about 225 guests at the age of 13.
