Deep in the heart of Chennai’s Valmiki Nagar, iconic Bharatanatyam dancer Medha Hari, 32, has been on a transformative journey, meticulously preparing for a stellar performance that earned her the Outstanding Dancer of the Year award in the Junior category at The Music Academy’s Dance Festival last month. With a unique approach that marries classical dance rehearsals and rigorous strength training, Hari has reshaped the narrative of a traditional Bharatanatyam practitioner. Her dedication over the past year — perfecting footwork, abhinaya, and muscular strength — exemplifies a growing trend among classical dancers adopting fitness regimes to elevate their craft.
Hari’s exploration into the realm of fitness began four years prior, following the birth of her twins, when she found herself grappling with persistent back injuries — a common issue for Bharatanatyam dancers due to the physically taxing nature of the form. This prompted her to seek out strength trainer Adarsh Gopalakrishnan’s expertise at Movement Inc. Since then, her customized training regimen has not only facilitated a swift recovery but also fortified her ability to perform demanding dance moves such as the araimandi and muzhumundi jumps with greater depth and vigor.
Bharatanatyam’s evolution from its 19th-century origins as Sadirattam to its contemporary global significance cannot be understated. It’s an art form synonymous with grace, stamina, and expressive storytelling — challenging dancers to channel an array of emotions using their body as an instrument. Performing a full Bharatanatyam margam is no less strenuous than completing a half-marathon, with dancers embodying a series of intricate movements that test the limits of human endurance.
The classical dance landscape has witnessed a seismic shift in its fitness paradigm over the last decade. Esteemed veteran dancer Malavika Sarukkai, 64, recounts an era when strenuous practice sessions were the sole means of tuning one’s physicality for the art form, oblivious to the concepts of fitness and hydration. However, times have changed, and she, too, has embraced the cross-training ethos inspired by younger dancers.
Alarmel Valli, another luminary with nearly six decades of a celebrated Bharatanatyam career, echoes this sentiment, reflecting on a past dominated by sheer willpower as opposed to the structured fitness routines of today. Valli laments her initial skepticism about strength training, acknowledging its pivotal role in mitigating dance-related ailments.
The advent of cross-training in the dance community is often attributed to serendipitous discoveries rather than deliberate choices. Anita Ratnam, 69, a pioneer in integrating contemporary themes with traditional Bharatanatyam, reminisces about her athletic youth that inadvertently conditioned her body for dance. It wasn’t until much later, after embracing Kalaripayittu — a traditional Indian martial art — that she recognized the significance of strength training, which now plays a crucial part in her regimen.
This newfound appreciation for cross-training has gained momentum within the Bharatanatyam community, adopted by dancers as young as 15, who recognize its role in augmenting agility, endurance, and resilience. It not only acts as a safeguard against injuries but also introduces a newfound physicality and dynamic athleticism to performances.
Such progressive training techniques have led to the development of systematic methodologies, enhancing body awareness and ensuring the sustainability of a dancer’s career. These methodologies are embodied by trainers like Adarsh Gopalakrishnan, who, with a clientele spanning India and abroad, curates holistic training programs sensitive to each dancer’s specific needs. His approach sees dancers as akin to athletes, aiming to refine their movements with precise strength and stability.
The stories of dancers embracing fitness are often steeped in personal battles with injury. New York-based Madhumanti Banerjee-Varun, a certified coach, and Kolkata-based Nilava Sen, a dancer with a gymnastic background, exemplify how understanding one’s body can preempt injuries and elevate artistic expression. In Mumbai, Gautam Marathe has pioneered ‘Aangika,’ a cross-training module that has gained substantial traction among Indian classical dancers of various genres looking to fortify their dance vocabulary with strength and stamina.
Interestingly, while practices like strength training, Pilates, and yoga are deeply ingrained in Western dance traditions such as ballet, Indian classical dance forms are only now beginning to embed these fitness components into their regimen. Mavin Khoo, a Bharatanatyam and ballet expert affiliated with the Akram Khan Company, notes the primal reliance on the body that his training in ballet emphasizes, in contrast to the more recent inclination towards physically demanding training found in Bharatanatyam.
Yet, as this progressive trend proliferates, it also invites introspective questions about the evolving aesthetic standards of classical dance. Are we fostering an environment of body shaming, imposing specific body types over natural talent and expressiveness? As the world shifts its attention to quick, visually captivating content — like those found on social media platforms such as Instagram — the dance community grapples with balancing classical traditions with contemporary expectations of athleticism and fitness.
It is clear that the Bharatanatyam landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, one where resilience and strength become as emblematic of the art form as the tales its dancers seek to tell. While some may approach these changes with caution, the movement towards a healthier, more physically equipped generation of dancers signifies a step towards defying limitations and redefining performance art.
