India
,
The Royal Country renowned for its respected culture and incomparable,
intoxicating and inimitable country of the world over for its rich heritage. The
land of the saintly sages and the royal rulers boasts of colourful customs and
timeless traditions. The people here carry on with the legacy of their own lands
and beautiful buildings act as evidence of the elegant architecture they have
inherited. Indian heritage is like a rainbow of multiple facets like performing
arts, crafts, religion, customs, traditions, beliefs, philosophy, history, health,
medicine, travel, cuisine, monuments, literature, painting and languages.
In order to explore the cultural heritage of India one needs to enjoy the components
of culture like music, dance, sculpture and other fine arts, festivities, languages
spoken, traditional beliefs, customs and food. In Indian heritage music is a cryptic
experience that is integral to human existence. India boasts of dance forms that
range from temple dances like Bharatnatyam, Odissi and Mohiniattam, to Kathakali,
symbolising the victory of truth over falsehood. Kathak and Kuchipudi are the
means to recite religious and mythological tales to the accompaniment of music,
mime and dance. Manipuri and Dandiya Raas represent the celebration of Radha-Krishna's
togetherness.
ARCHITECTURE
Civilisation in India had flourished along the banks of her rivers, off the
sea-shores & in semi arid regions. Depending on the locale, materials like
wood, mud, bricks, tatches woven of palm & coconut leaves have been used.
Huge stones had also been used to create archways, temples etc.,
India is the home of one of the Seven Wonders of the world - Taj Mahal.
PAINTING & SCULPTURE
India has very strong but ancient traditions in painting & sculpture. The
evidence lies in the frescoes of Ajanta and Ellora, the Buddhist palm leaf manuscripts
and the Jain texts and Khajuraho tempels. Religion had a great influence on
the early Indian paintings. There are several series depicting the life of Lord
Krishna. The Islamic period saw many schools bearing Persian and Indian influence,
produce miniatures in tempera on paper. The Ragini paintings, depicting the
musical modes, are unique in the world. Some of the well-known Indian painting
schools are the Rajput, Deccan, Kangra and Moghul.
The art scene in India is enriched today by artists like M.F. Hussain, J. Swaminathan,
N.S. Bendre, Krishen Khanna, Vivan Sundaram, Bhupen Khakar, Ghulam Shaikh and
many others.
DANCE
The origin of classical dance in India goes back to 2BC when the ancient treatise
on dance, Natya Shastra, was compiled. Dance in India is guided by the elaborate
codes in the Natya Shastra and by mythology, legend and classical literature.
Both classical and folk form of dances are performed in India. Classical dance
forms have rigid rules for presentation. Among the leading forms of classical
dance are Bharat Natyam, Kathakali, Kathak, Manipuri, Odissi, Kuchipudi and
Mohini Attam. Bharat Natyam, originating in Tamil Nadu, has movements of pure
rhythm, rendering a story dramatically in different moods. Kathakali, the dance
drama from Kerala, requires the artist to wear an elaborate mask. The principal
classical dance of north India, Kathak, originated as a religious performance
but later developed as a court dance under the Moghuls. The lyrical style of
dance, Manipuri, comes from the eastern State of Manipur. It described the games
of Krishna and the "Gopis". Odissi was once a temple dance in Orissa.
Kuchipudi, the dance-drama from Andhra Pradesh, is based on themes from the
epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata. In addition, there are numerous forms of folk
and tribal dance in India.
THEATRE
The classical theatre survives only in a few cities. But the folk theatre thrives
in almost every linguistic region. Its themes are becoming modern. The professional
theatre is largely confined to big urban centres. It draws on the work of modern
playwrights and also likes to experiment with various forms including folk theatre.
The plays are performed in Indian languages as well as English. The rich tradition
of puppet theatre also survives in many parts of the country. The National School
of Drama not only trains students, but also conducts research in classical,
traditional and modern drama.
FILMS
The country leads the world in the output of movie films, with more than 900
produced annually. They command an enormous domestic market and have become
increasingly popular abroad, particularly in Asia, Africa and West Asia. The
major production centres are Mumbai, Madras and Calcutta. Movies are the most
popular medium of entertainment. Much of the commercial cinema revolves around
social dramas and thrillers with many songs and dance sequences thrown in. But
an art cinema which takes a serious look at Indian society is becoming increasingly
popular. There has been widespread recognition of Indian artistes and directors
at film festivals in different parts of the world. The late Satyajit Ray was
awarded many prestigious international awards including the Oscar in 1992 for
Lifetime Achievement in Cinema.
MUSIC
The ancient Indians believed in the divine origin of music. The purest form
of sound was considered equal to cosmic energy. As a result, music and religion
were always closely intertwined. Classical music tradition was probably evolved
from the religious poems and chants of the Vedic period. It was later codified
by Bharata Muni.
SPORTS
Hockey, in which India has an impressive record with eight Olympic gold medals,
is officially the national sport. Other popular games are football, cricket,
basketball, volleyball and badminton. Cricket has become a very popular game
and India, once one-day cricket champions, staged the World Cup in 1987 and
again in 1996. Sunil Gavaskar's aggregate of 10,122 test runs and 34 test hundreds
remain unbeaten world records.
Among the
indigenously developed games, the most popular are kabaddi and kho-kho. National
competitions are held in these two games. Among equestrian sports, tent-pegging
has a uniquely Indian flavour. Camel races and elephant races are also uniquely
Indian. Among the indigenous water sports, the snake-boat race which takes place
in the backwaters of Kerala during the Onam festival has now become an international
tourist attraction.
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