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Odissi dance , which is a typical classical dance form of Orissa, has its origin in the temple of Orissa. It traces its history from the 2nd century BC to an early sculpture found in the Ranigumpha caves at Udaygiri(Orissa). "Orissi [Odissi] may well claim to be the earliest classical Indian dance style on the basis of archaeological evidence, . . ." (Vatsyayan 34) affirms an eminent dance scholar, Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan, in her book, Indian Classical Dance. Odissi thus appears to be the oldest classical dance rooted in rituals and tradition. Infact the NătyaShăstra refers to Odra Magadhi as one of the vrittis and Odra refers to Orissa.
Odissi is based on the popular devotion to Lord Krishna and the verses of the Sanskrit play Geet Govinda are used to depict the love and devotion to God. Odissi performances are replete with lores of the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, Lord Krishna. It is a soft, lyrical classical dance which depicts the ambience of Orissa and the philosophy of its most popular deity, Lord Jagannath, whose temple is in Puri. On the temple walls of Bhuvaneshwar, Puri and Konark the dance sculptures of Odissi are clearly visible.
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Maharis
& Gotipuas |
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 The dances were passed down, in the case of Maharis (female temple dancers), from mother to adopted daughter, and, in the case of Gotipuas, from teacher to the dedicated boys. Dance by Maharis was totally stopped in the temple of Lord Jagannath after independence. Although no definite date can be conclusively found regarding the practice of dance as an indispensable part of the ritual of the worship, the chronicle records of the temple called Mandal Panji, however show that it was certainly synonymous with the Jagannath cult.
The consecration of females to the service of temple dancing began in the Shaivite temples and continued in the Jagannath temple in service of the Lord Jagannath. These female attendants have been known as maharis (great women) or devadasis (servants of the lord) and have been considered the wives of Lord Jagannath. Odissi developed through their art. A class of boy dancers emerged in the 17th century called gotipuas. Goti means single and pua means boy. They brought the dance style out of the temples and performed in public.
In post-independent India, Odissi was revived as a neo-classical form, by a group of dance practitioners/teachers and scholars, who formed the group known as Jayantika. The four dance teachers were traditionalists and revivalists of the old dance form. Pankaj Charan Das, Kelu Charan Mahapatra, Deba Prasad Das, and Mayadhar Raut, were characterized by their love and passion for the dance. They struggled through poverty and adverse conditions in pursuit of their beloved art form, to introduce this wonderful art form to the world as a stagecraft. Although Odissi moved from temple to theatre and lost some of its spiritual quality, without the coming together of these four great dancers and teachers, who introduced this dance form to the theatre, the dance would have been totally lost to posterity as an art form.
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Dance Movement |
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 Odissi dance style had been set on a very distinctive method of body manipulation. The Odissi dancers use their head, bust and torso in soft flowing movements to express specific moods and emotions. In no other clasical dance form , is seen such a close relationship between the art of dance and the sculpture. It is as if the sculpture is alive in movement. Especially the 'Tribhangi' (three-bend position of the body) stance is very much a distinct feature of Odissi. The form is curvaceous, concentrating on the tribhang or the division of the body into three parts, head, bust and torso. The fascinating, delicate torso movement in a rythmic and lyrical way blending harmoniously with the scintillating and lilting music of Odissi gives a spell-bounding experience and a tranquiliting effect on one's mind. The dance songs are dedicated to the incarnation of Lord Vishnu- Lord Jagannath. The divine love tales of Radha and the cowherd God Krishna are favourite themes for interpretation. At least one or two ashtapadis of Gita Govindam by Jaidev are an integral part of the Odissi.
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Repertoire |
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 Odissi dance style follows the basic principles of the
Nătya Shăstra tradition and methodologies of movement described in the Shilpashastras of Orissa such as
Shilpaprakasha and the Shilpasarani . The human body is treated in term of the three
Bhangas- Samabhanga , Dvibhanga and Tribhanga; along which deflections of the head, torso, and hips can take place.
The repertoire of Odissi like other classical dance forms also consists of the elements of
Nritta and Abhinaya and Tăndava and Lăsya. The Odissi dancer has to master various aspects of the nritta technique comprising the static positions, the sculptural poses, the manner of covering space and also the manipulation of the metrical cycle through the articulation of the neck, torso and the movement of the lower limbs and to cover space in different directions and to move along straight lines, diagonals, figures of eight and spirals and to shift weight and play the level.
The present format of the repertoire may not have been present in the earlier times, but have been reconstructed by the pioneers of the revival of this art form. A typical repertoire consists of a
Mangalacharan, then a Batu Nrutya or Sthayi, a Pallavi followed by an Abhinaya piece
and closing up with a Mokshya.
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Music for Odissi
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 Indian Classical Music has 5 significant branches - Avanti, Panchali, Udramagadhi, Hindustani and Karnataki. Of these, Udramagadhi exists in the form of Odissi music, primarily practiced in the state of Orissa.
Odissi music is a unique blend of North and South Indian classical music but with its own distinct qualities. The Odissi musical orchestra today consists of the Guru who mostly is also the pakhawaj (two headed drum) player, one or two vocalists, one or more of the following: sitar -player, violinist, flute player, and possibly a manjira (small cymbals) player. Odissi music gives great importance to the lyric where words are required to be sung without fragmentation or distortion. All songs are required to be sung in specific 'raagas' and 'Taalas'. Typical Odissi taalas have a different distribution of beat and pause from north or south Indian taalas with the same number of beats. Odissi style of singing lays great stress on 'Prabandha' or 'text of the song'. All Odissi lyricists are reknowned poets - Jayadev, Kavisamrat Upendra Bhanja, Deenkrushna, Kavisurya Baladev Ratha, Gopalkrushna, Banamali etc. Odissi songs traditionally depict the love and frolicks of Radha and Krishna. The percussion instrument played with Odissi music is the 'Mardala', which is similar to 'pakhwaj'. Temple sculptures in Orissa depict statues of 'Mardala' players.
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