NATYASASTRA

The Natyashastra is an ancient Indian essay on the performing arts covering theatre, dance and music. While it primarily deals with stage art, it has come to influence music, dance and literature. It is very important to the history of Indian classical music because it is the only writing which gives such detail about the music and instruments of the period. Argument can be made that the Natyashastra is the foundation of fine arts in India.

Abhinaya is a concept in Indian dance and drama derived from Bharata's NatyaShastra.Bharata describes 15 types of drama ranging from one to ten acts. The principles for stage design are placed down in some detail. Specific chapters deal with aspects such as makeup, costume, acting, directing, etc. A large section deals with meanings allowed by the performance (bhaavas) get particular importance, leading to a broad theory of aesthetics (rasas). Natyashastra is a distinct absence of final evidence that classical Sanskrit dramas regarded the Natyashastra as a narrowscript. In sanskrit dramas suggest to things that seem to match with parts of the Natyashastra, but many Sanskrit dramas also include elements that the Natyashastra forbids.Four kinds of abhinaya (acting) are described – physical (angika), verbal (vaacika), that by costumes and makeup (aahaarya), and the highest mode, by means of internal emotions, expressed through minute movements of the lips, eyebrows, ear, etc. (saattvika).

The Natyashastra has been divided into 36 chapters, sometimes into 37 or 38 due to further bifurcation of a chapter or chapters. The title can be loosely translated as "A compendium of Theatre or A Manual of Dramatic Arts". The background of Natyashastra is framed in a situation where a number of munis approach Bharata to know about the secrets of Natyaveda.

The analysis of body forms and movements also influenced sculpture and the other arts in subsequent centuries. The structures of music outlined in the Natyashastra retain their influence even today.