Odissi

Odissi is a classical dance of the eastern Indian state of Odisha and is often described as one of the oldest surviving Indian classical forms. Its antiquity is attested by 2nd-century BCE relief carvings of dancers and musicians in the Manchapuri cave at Udayagiri (near Bhubaneswar) and by the Natya Shastra, which names odra-magadhi (the manner of the Odra country) among its regional styles. For centuries the dance lived in two streams: the maharis or devadasis, temple women dedicated to service at the Jagannath temple in Puri who performed ritual dance and sang Jayadeva's Gita Govinda before the deity, and the gotipuas, boys dressed as girls who danced in temple precincts and akhadas, carrying a more athletic, acrobatic repertoire (bandha nrutya). Under colonial rule the temple-dance tradition was stigmatized and effectively suppressed by anti-nautch sentiment in the early 20th century. After Indian independence, scholars and gurus reconstructed the form from temple sculpture, palm-leaf texts and surviving maharis and gotipuas, and it was recognized as a classical dance in the mid-1950s.

Culturally, Odissi is inseparable from Jagannath worship and the Vaishnava bhakti movement; the Gita Govinda's ashtapadis, depicting the love of Radha and Krishna, remain its devotional and poetic heart. In character the dance is lyrical, graceful and deeply devotional, alternating pure rhythmic passages with tender expressive storytelling.

Technically, Odissi rests on two basic body positions: chowka, a wide, square, weight-balanced stance evoking Lord Jagannath, symbolizing strength; and tribhanga, the signature three-bend posture in which head, torso and hips deflect in opposite directions to create a sinuous S-curve. A hallmark is the independent deflection or shift of the torso/chest, together with intricate footwork, hand gestures (hastas/mudras) and facial expression (abhinaya). The still poses consciously echo the karanas and figures of Odishan temple sculpture. Costume and ornament reinforce the sculptural image: brightly patterned Sambalpuri/ikat silk stitched into a dancing costume, elaborate silver filigree (tarakasi) jewelry, the belt (mekhala), ankle bells (ghungru), painted alta on hands and feet, and the distinctive tahia, a crown of cane and white flowers rising behind the head to suggest a temple spire.

Musically, Odissi has its own classical system with characteristic ragas (Kalyana, Nata, Sri, Baradi, Gauri and others) and talas such as Ektali, Khemta and Jhampa, led by the mardala drum and accompanied by flute, strings, cymbals and voice. A traditional recital follows a set sequence: Mangalacharan (invocation, flower offering and salutation), Batu or Sthayi (a pure-dance homage, often to Shiva/Batukeshwar Bhairava), Pallavi (a lyrical elaboration of a raga in pure movement), Abhinaya (expressive interpretation of a song, typically a Gita Govinda ashtapadi), and Moksha (the concluding dance of spiritual liberation). The 20th-century revival is owed above all to a handful of gurus — Pankaj Charan Das (rooted in the mahari tradition), Kelucharan Mohapatra (the most influential choreographer of the modern form), Deba Prasad Das and Mayadhar Raut — and to the celebrated dancer Sanjukta Panigrahi, who carried Odissi to international stages.