The most famous bharathanatyam dancer

1.DR. PADMA SUBRAHMANYAM

The most famous bharathanatyam dancer is ,Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam, is an Indian classical Bharata Natyam dancer. She is also a research scholar, choreographer, music composer, musician, teacher and author.She is famous in India as well as abroad: several films and documentaries have been made in her honor by countries like Japan, Australia and Russia.Padma Subrahmanyam was born to Directer Subrahmanyam and Meenakshi Subrahmanyam.Her creativity as dancer and choreographer includes expansion of the technique through the use of the entire body with leaps and extension of legs and fast footwork for ramification of rhythm. Padma has revived mono-acting technique (Banika style) through Krishnaya Tubhyam Namaha, Ramaya Tubhyam Namaha, Jaya Jaya Sankara and other productions. She has given several solo and group presentations (including dance dramas) such as Meenakshi Kalyanam, Viralimalai Kuravanji, Valli Kalyanam, Silappadikaram, Krishna Tulabaram, Parijata Aharanam, Nagarukku Appal, Geetanjali, Shyama, Sri Gurave Namaha, Pavai Nombu, Vande Mataram (specially produced for the Golden Jubilee of India's Independence) and so on. 

ACHIEVEMENT AND AWARDS

She has designed the sculptures of the 108 Karanas of Lord Siva and Godess Parvati in black granite for the Nataraja temple at Satara in Maharashtra, an undertaking she took on at Kanchi Paramacharya's bidding. She was asked to freeze those movements of the Karanas, which are not sculpted in the older temples of Tanjore or Chidambaram. She has made use of the twin figures of Siva and Parvati to bring out the animation of each of the Karana movements.
Twelve years after completing her design of these 108 Karana figures, she discovered by the grace of the sage of Kanchi, about 50 Karana sculptures in the world-renowned monument temple complex at Prambanan in Central Java, Indonesia belonging to the 9th century AD.

2.ALARMEL VALLI

 Alarmel Valli is an Indian classical dancer and chreographer. Born September 14, 1956, Valli is the founder of Dipashikha, a centre for fine arts in Chennai, established in 1984, where she teaches Bharatanatyam, is the foremost exponent of the Pandanallur style dance form of Bharatanatyam. She was the youngest dancer to be conferred the President award of Padma Shri in 1991. She was also awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2001 and the Padma Bhushan in 2004.Alarmel Valli was born and brought up in Chennai, where she did her schooling from The Sacred Heart Matriculation School, at Church Park, Chennai and later studied at the Stella Maris College, Chennai. She trained in the Pandanallur style of Bharat Natyam under Pandanallur Chokkalingam Pillai and his son Subbaraya Pillai. She studied music under T. Muktha, of the Veena Dhanammal style of music for many years.

She made her stage debut at an early age of 9 1/2 under the auspices of Indian Institute of Fine Arts, Madras and was conferred the Natya Kala Bhushan award and won her laurels on the International scene when she was barely 16 at the International Dance Festival of Theatre organised by the prestigious Sarah Bernhardt Théâtre de la Ville, in Paris, and has been performing ever since, both in India and aboard.She also learned Odissi under Guru Kelucharan Mohapatam and his disciple Guru Ramani Ranjan Jena, and studied classical Tamail litrerature anthologies of the 2000 years old, Sangam poetry. Over the years she has gradually evolved her own distinct style that extended her tradition within the broad framework of classical Bharatanatyam.
ACHIEVEMENT AND HONORS

• 1969:The title of “Natyakalabhushanam” from the Indian Fine Arts Society.
• 1985: Nritya Choodamani, from the Krishna Gana Sabha (Madras).
• 1991: Padma Sri^[11]
• 2004: Padma Bhushan
• 2004: Chevalier of Arts and Letters award from the French Government^[2][

My favourite Indian classic dance

1.BHARATHANATYAM

My favorite Indian classic dances is bharathanatyam and kathakali. This two dance which i liked most than other classic dances .why i like bharathanatyam and kathakali because this two dances mainly get the respect when it on the stage. First of all explain about bharathanatyam and y its my favorite. bharathanatyam is one of the famous dance in Indian culture. It takes apart as a mother to all classic dances. Bharathanatyam, is a pre-eminent Indian classical dance form presumably the oldest classical dance heritage of India is regarded as mother of many other Indian classical dance forms. Bharathanatyam is a solo dance performed only by women, it initiated in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu and eventually flourished in South India.In Bharathanatyam the dancer communicates a story, spiritual themes, message or feelings through expressive gestures and slower body movements harmonized with musical notes.The dance form typically comprises of certain sections performed in sequence namely Alarippu, Jatiswaram, Shabdam, Varnam, Padam and Thillana. Another reason is Bharathanatyam is my favorite because of the costumes they wear.The style of dressing of a Bharatanatyam dancer is more or less similar to that of a Tamil Hindu bride. She wears a gorgeous tailor-made sari that consists of a cloth specially stitched in pleats that falls in the front from the waist and when the dancer performs spectacular footwork that include stretching or bending her knees, the cloth widens up like a hand fan. The sari worn in a special manner is well complimented with traditional jewelry that include the ones that adorn her head, nose, ear and neck and vivid face make-up specially highlighting her eyes so that audience can view her expressions properly. Her hair neatly plaited in conventional way is often beautified with flowers. A jewellery belt adorns her waist while musical anklets called ghunghru made of leather straps with small metallic bells attached to it are wrapped in her ankles. Her feet and fingers are often brightened with henna colour so as to highlight gestures of her hands. 
Costumes

Jewelry they use

Face makeup

The list of indian classic dances

1)   Bharatanatyam, from Tamil Nadu

Bharatanatyam is an Indian classical dance that originated in the Hindu temples of Tamil Nadu and neighbouring areas. ... Bharatanatyam, a pre-eminent Indian classical dance form presumably the oldest classical dance heritage of India is regarded as mother of many other Indian.

2)  Kathak, from Northern and Western India.

Kathak is one of the ten major forms of Indian classical dance. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards of ancient northern India, known as Kathakars or storytellers.

3)  Kathakali, from Kerala.

Kathakali, the 300 year old classical dance form of Kerala has combined the facets of ballet, opera, masque and the pantomime.

4)  Kuchipudi, from Andhra Pradesh.

Kuchipudi is one of the eight major Indian classical dances. It originated in a village named Krishna district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance art, with its roots in the ancient Hindu Sanskrit text of Natya Shastra.

5)  Odissi, from Odisha.

Odissi also referred to as Orissi in older literature, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the Hindu temples of Odisha – an eastern coastal state of India.

6)  Sattriya, from Assam.

Sattriya or Sattriya Nritya, is a major Indian classical dance. It is a dance-drama performance art with origins in the Krishna-centered Vaishnavism monasteries of Assam, and attributed to the 15th century Bhakti movement scholar and saint named Srimanta Sankardev.

7) Manipuri, from Manipur.

Manipuri dance, also known as Jagoi, is one of the major Indian classical dance forms, named after the region of its origin – Manipur, a state in northeastern India bordering with Myanmar (Burma), Assam, Nagaland and Mizoram.

8) Mohiniyattam, from Kerala.

Mohiniyattam literally interpreted as the dance of 'Mohini', the celestial enchantress of the Hindu mythology, is the classical solo dance ...It is perfomed by women. The word Mohini means a maiden who steals the heart  ...

The History of Indian classic dances

When a group of Gods and Godesses pleaded with Lord Brahma for another simple Veda for the common man in Kaliyuga to be created, he created the Panchamaveda, the Fifth Veda, or NatyaVeda. He took pathya, the words from the Rigveda, abhinaya, the communicating elements of the body from the Yajurveda, geet, the music and chant from the Samaveda, and rasa, the vital sentiment and emotional element from the Atharvaveda to form the fifth Veda, NatyaVeda.

After creating this Veda, Lord Brahma handed it to sage Bharata and asked him to propagate it on the earth. Another legend has that the Goddess Parvathi taught this dance art to Usha, the daughter of demon Banasura. Later, Usha handed it to the Gopikas of the city of Dwaraka, the Lord Krishna's birth place. In reality, the Gods and the Goddesses, being dancers themselves, have been passing the art of the heavenly dance through many human channels. 

Today, the Indian classical dance has undergone a lot of changes over the centuries. Most of the contemporary dancers use the formal classical Indian dance technique to stage ballets presenting various themes such as nationalism, unity of religions, the sanctity of the environment, the animal rights activism, the greatness of a king .Classical dance in India has developed a type of dance-drama that is a form of a total theater. The dancer acts out a story almost exclusively through gestures. Most of the classical dances of India enact stories from Hindu mythology.Each form represents the culture and ethos of a particular region or a group of people.of India have roots in Hindu arts and religious practices.The tradition of dance has been codified in the Natyashastra and a performance is considered accomplished if it manages to evoke a emotion among the audience by invoking a particular gesture or facial expression. Classical dance is distinguished from folk dance because it has been regulated by the rules of the Natyashastra and all classical dances are performed only in accordance with them. Classical dance in India has developed a type of dance-drama that is a form of a total theater. The dancer acts out a story almost exclusively through gestures. Most of the classical dances of India enact stories from Hindu mythology.Each form represents the culture and ethos of a particular region or a group of people.of India have roots in Hindu arts and religious practices.The tradition of dance has been codified in the Natyashastra and a performance is considered accomplished if it manages to evoke a emotion among the audience by invoking a particular gesture or facial expression. Classical dance is distinguished from folk dance because it has been regulated by the rules of the Natyashastra and all classical dances are performed only in accordance with them.

Videos