Indian Contemporary Dance: History, Forms and Evolution

Indian contemporary dance is a modern movement practice that is still evolving. To put it simply it leans heavily on Indian roots for its foundations.

The word contemporary describes it as a dance that is very much of today, and also a bit radical in its approach to choreography. It is not just a retread of some ancient traditional piece.

Choreographers often take the bits they like and interpret them in their own way to tell a personal story or make a point about politics or social issues.

Key Characteristics

• Hybrid vocabulary:

Indian and world dance influences are thrown together in one big mix, and there’s more than a hint of innovation going on.

• Choreographer-led creation:

It is all very much choreographer-led, with the artist in charge, bringing their own ideas and vision to the table.

• Improvisation:

Expect a lot of spontaneity with dancers exploring movement, repetition and the rhythm of space.

• Interdisciplinary staging:

It is a bit of a melting pot of different styles; dance is often merged with theatre, music, film, visual art and all sorts of other multimedia.

• Modern themes:

You will probably notice that many of the works that get performed these days explore themes that are relevant to Indian life today – things like identity, social change and what it is like to live in a modern city.

History of Indian Contemporary Dance

Indian contemporary dance grew over roughly a century through experiments with

• Indian traditions
• Western stagecraft
• New ideas of authorship

Uday Shankar’s work from the 1920s and 1930s is the usual starting point. The form has since moved from “modern Indian dance” to a plural, concept-led field.

Early Foundations: Tagore and Uday Shankar

Shankar started out by studying art in Mumbai and London. He even danced on stage with the famous Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova in the 1920s.

Eventually he went back to India and started his own dance company – and with the encouragement of Tagore, he built the Uday Shankar India Culture Centre in Almora in 1938, where he would teach all sorts of Indian dance forms and music.

But that all got closed down during the second world war, then a year after Shankar died in 1977 his followers started up a new centre in Kolkata in 1965.

Growth After Independence

Narendra Sharma had a go at training with Shankar at Almora and went on to start up his very own dance company, The Bhoomika Ballet, back in 1972.

Then in 1976 he even won an award for his contemporary choreography. This was the start of things taking off.Next door in Kolkata Manjusri Chaki-Sircar made a name for herself by setting up the Dancers’ Guild back in 1981, and even won an award herself for her work in creative dance.

Institutions that Built the Field

1. Sangeet Natak Akademi:

The national academy lists creative and experimental dance among its award categories. The recent honours have also gone to contemporary dancers such as Deepak Mazumdar (2019).

2. Attakkalari Centre for Movement Arts:

Founded in 1992 by Jayachandran Palazhy, it began in Aluva, Kerala, and later moved to Bengaluru. It runs a Diploma in Movement Arts and Mixed Media and the Attakkalari India Biennial, held every two years since 2000.

3. Gati Dance Forum:

Founded in Delhi in 2007, it started the Gati Summer Dance Residency in 2009 to support emerging choreographers with mentoring and studio space.

Contemporary Dance Today

Today’s work includes

• solo pieces
• ensemble choreography
• dance theatre
• site-specific performance

This is often with film, projection and sound design.

Major Forms and Influences

Indian contemporary dance does not have fixed sub-styles. Choreographers select and reinterpret influences to build new performance languages.

Classical dance teaches contemporary artists a thing or two about discipline – even if it is just mastering the intricacies of a Bharatanatyam stance. A choreographer can take that stance and just ditch the story behind it in order to explore something like urban stress or even resistance – and that is perfectly okay. It is worth remembering that folk and martial traditions show us that Indian contemporary dance doesn’t have to have a single Western look.

Key Pioneers and Choreographers

These artists show that no single technique defines the form. Some start from classical dance, others from martial arts, yoga or theatre.

Evolution of Indian Contemporary Dance

• From modern dance to contemporary dance:

Early work was called “modern Indian dance” or “Indian ballet.” Later, “contemporary” became the wider term for experimental, individual choreography.

• From fusion to concept-led work:

Early pioneers often combined recognisable Indian and Western elements. Later artists start with a concept, research question or improvisation instead of a fixed fusion formula.

• Digital and global directions:

Films, projections and soundscapes are now all fair game and being used alongside live movement, and the festivals out there are doing a great job of linking Indian artists up with people all over the world.

Indian Contemporary Dance vs Classical Dance

Well, for a start, classical dance is pretty much all about codified techniques and traditional dance pieces. Contemporary dance on the other hand is a lot looser. It is basically all about experimenting and coming up with something new and different.

Many contemporary choreographers begin with deep classical training and then adapt that grammar for new contexts.

Why Indian Contemporary Dance Matters

It keeps movement traditions alive through reinvention and gives space to experiences classical repertoires may not easily hold, such as migration, gender and urban life. Careers include

• Performance
• Choreography
• Dance education
• Arts administration
• Festival curation

How to Learn Indian Contemporary Dance

Start with getting a feel for your body and what it can do in terms of rhythm. Build on that with some serious improvisation, composition and performance experience.

1. Building up your physical foundations is key – so focus on flexibility, balance, strength, coordination and breath control.
2. Then you need to get a solid grounding in something like Bharatanatyam, Kathak or even Kalaripayattu – all of which will serve as a great foundation.
3. Next up, you need to start studying the techniques that are specific to contemporary dance – like floor work, release, momentum and partnering.
4. Watch some performances – Uday Shankar, Chandralekha, Astad Deboo and Aditi Mangaldas are all worth looking out for. Keep an eye on how they use the physical space around them.
5. Create some short pieces – experiment with theme, levels, tempo and all that – and don’t be afraid to leave some space.
6. Get to some workshops and festivals – the more you get to see and do live, the better.

Conclusion

Indian contemporary dance is all about India’s rich classical, folk and martial traditions. But it is also all about pushing boundaries and trying new things.

It spans from Uday Shankar’s Almora ballet centre right through to today’s boundary-pushing interdisciplinary choreography. It is not about abandoning the traditions that came before. Rather, it’s about taking old ideas and making them work in new and interesting ways for new bodies and new audiences.

So if you want to explore it all, the best place to start is with one of the fundamental grounding forms. Then just keep an eye on some of the pioneers in the field.