Page 35 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - India

A POR TR AIT OF INDIA  33

Navarasa or nine rasas
(moods) are mentioned in
the treatise Natya Shastra.
From the erotic, comic and
pathetic to the odious,
marvellous and quiescent,
the rasas cover every mood
and expression, whether in
music, dance or painting.
This 17th-century miniature
painting depicts the serene
mood of the morning,
Raga Todi. Kerala’s Kathakali dance featuring
spectacular masks (see p661)
Elaborate
Fresh flowers jewellery
adorn the hair. Diaphanous
veil
Red colour on the
hands and feet draws
attention to intricate
movements.

Crinoline-like
skirts and
gentle swaying
movements
are typical of
Manipuri dance.
Chiselled movements
Beautiful and symmetrical
silk sari stances are typical
of this dance form.
Bharat Natyam, from Tamil Nadu, has eloquent Manipuri, from the northeast, enacts the
eye and hand movements (mudras). legend of Radha and Krishna (see p183).

Bismillah Khan (1913–2006) played
the shehnai, a ceremonial reed pipe,
which the late maestro popularized
into a concert instrument.

Zakir Hussain
plays the tabla, a
pair of drums
that provide Kishori Amonkar (1932–2017) was a
percussion at leading singer of Hindustani classical music.
most music A concert usually begins with an evocation
and dance of the raga, followed by an elaboration of
performances. the melodic line and a fast-paced climax.

032-033_EW_India.indd 33 04/05/17 3:23 pm