The annual dance festivals held in temples to coincide with the festival of Shivaratri are growing in Tamil Nadu. In a way, these festivals are bringing back dance to where it belonged.
The practice was revived in a very small and symbolic manner at the famed Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram, a little over 25 years ago. This initiative was the work of a few people who were passionate about Indian music and dance.
Slowly, others were inspired. And dance festivals were held in other temple towns. Today, dance performances are held in the temples at Thiruvarur and Thirunallar, Nagapattinam and Kumbakonam, Thanjavur and Pondicherry, besides Chidambaram. And also in the temples of Chennai, like Sri Kapaleeswarar Temple, Mylapore.
Every year, KutcheriBuzz covers the Natyanjali fests closely. We provide a preview of these events, useful info for those who intend to travel to these fests, reports on the events and videos of some of the dance recitals at Chidambaram.
We invite you to log on to this section and enjoy the coverage closely.
We would like to invite dancers who have performed at these temples in the past to send us a few lines about their experiences. These notes will be posted in this section. ( you may e-mail us at - editor@kutcheribuzz.com)
