This painting portrays a Kathak dancer in profile. Kathak is a North Indian dance style whose origins are obscure. However, this dance form was shaped in the Mughal Period by Muslim influence and it soon became a secular entertainment of no religious or spiritual significance. Here the dancer wears a tight pajama, a choli and a diaphanous odhini that accentuates the whirling and spinning of Kathak as well as her shapely figure. She is adorned with jewelry from head to toe. The palms of her hands and bare feet are dyed in henna. In the Kathak tradition, as splendidly exemplified in this painting, the emphasis is on fast footwork and lively turns and the movement of this dancer is frozen in the frame. Her hair is tied in a knot and the rest flows down her back, competing with the flow of her odhini.
There is lyricism and rhythm in the painting, speed of lightening in her movement, grace in her limbs and dignity in expression. The artist has wisely used contrasting colors of garments and those in the twin border encompassing the painting that reiterates that music and dance permeate every aspect of Indian life in a spontaneous and completely natural way.
The description by Kiranjyot
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