Paper short abstract:

The paper questions the religious and ritual dimensions of Kathak as its allegedly essential features. It demonstrates the changes in Kathak art and praxis due to its relocation from courts and salons to modern dance schools and theatres, underlining the tendency to sanctify the dance.

Paper long abstract:

The paper aims to examine the phenomenon of sacralization of Kathak dance in the context of national identity formation. Focusing on the tradition of Lucknow gharana, it traces the transformation of Indo-islamic, secular performing arts patronized by nawabs of Oudh to the classical dance form, disseminated under auspices of Indian government among middle classes. The shift of hereditary performers to newly established national dance institutes and auditoria resulted in significant changes in artistic conventions, repertoire, and the system of knowledge transmission. In order to conform to new class of practitioners, sponsors and audiences, erotic aspects of the art have been cleansed or reinterpreted in terms of bhakti. Additionally, numerous devotional and ritual elements have been introduced into the new format and spaces of performance, as well as in the dance theory and training. The paper intends to demonstrate to what extent Kathak art has been refashioned as a representation of India's cultural heritage and its emphasized religious (Hindu) dimension in the course of the twentieth-century dance revival. It questions various theories on the religious roots of Kathak, and points to the ambivalence of śringara theme in traditional Kathak repertoire. Contemporary attempts to spiritualize Kathak (such as combining the dance with Sufism or yoga) are also considered as alternative to its 'Hinduization'. The research is based on ethnographic fieldwork (interviews, observations) conducted in India (2013-2015) and performance analysis.