Tagore’s Mystique of Dance

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Rabindranath Tagore derived inspiration from diverse sources while articulating his ingenuity in the realm of visual, literary and performing arts. However, there always emerged an unmistakable fount of creativity of his own, expressed through Rabindra Nritya (Tagore’s Dance).

Tagore’s Mystique of Dance examines, with archival images, three key hypotheses: What were the evolutionary features of Tagore’s dance-persona? What seminal cross-cultural liaisons did he undertake to arrive at the choreographic genre of Rabindra Nritya? And, what dance-vocabulary and literary content could be its imprimatur?

Beginning with an overview of Tagore’s multi-faceted persona and the role played by the natural surroundings of Santiniketan, as well as the crags and crevices of British, German and Polish culture in nurturing his virtuoso genius, this book explores how Tagore initiated a genre of ‘mood dance’, incorporating the most suitable dance elements from the classical dances of the Indian sub-continent and the regional dances of the Asia-Pacific; and how he brought forth an efflorescence of wonderful seasonal odes, exquisite music dramas and dance-dramas that remain unparalleled in the Indian cultural milieu. Recapitulating the basics of Indian grammar of dance and re-mapping Tagore’s Dance in that light, Tagore’s Mystique of Dance looks back at the treasure-trove of his music and the panoply of his paintings, unearthing only the dancing figures, thereby unravelling their mystique and documenting the legacy of Tagore’s Dance.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Utpal K Banerjee

Dr. Utpal K. Banerjee's career is both varied and prolific. He has been an adviser on management and information technology for over thirty years and has an abiding interest in Indian art and culture. In 1998, he was sent by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) to lecture on art and culture in South America. Earlier lectures included those given in Canada and the USA in 1990 and 1995 when he was invited by ICCR and Kalabharati Foundation of Canada. His comprehensive book, Indian Performing Arts, has gone into several editions and another, Begali Theatre: 200 Years, has been published by the Publications Division, Government of India. His most recent works include Indian Performing Arts: A Mosaic and Indian Puppets. Dr. Banerjee's formal introduction to the visual and performing arts of the world came through several courses that he attended at the Extra-Mural department, University of Manchester, UK in 1969-72. He was National Project Director for the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) for a UNDP project on 'Multimedia Database for Art and Culture Documentation and Computerisation'. His articles appear regularly in India Perspective, Indian Horizons and The Pioneer. He has contributed to countless cultural programmes on the BBC, All Indian Radio and Doordarshan.