Bharatnatyam, a major Indian classical dance genre, finds its origins in the state of Tamil Nadu in the south of India. Expressing south Indian religious themes and mythological ideas, Bharatnatyam was traditionally performed as a solo dance. Its theoretical foundations can be traced back to the text written by Bharata Muni -the Natya Shastra. It is characterised by its different body posture: fixed upper torso and legs bent or knees flexed out, and includes spectacular footwork and a sophisticated vocabulary of sign language-based on gestures of hands, eyes and facial muscles.

Kuchipudi is an Indian classical dance style originating from the village of Kuchipudi in the south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi was traditionally a dance drama performance, performed by Brahmin males who travelled from one village to other narrating mythological stories. It is characterised by graceful, circular movements, and also finds its theoretical origins in Bharata Muni’s Natya Shastra (or the treatise on dramatization). One of the specialities of Kuchipudi is the dance on a brass plate with a pot on her head known as the “Tarangam.”