The Dress and the Ghungroos

Ghunghru

Ghunghru or ghunghroo are the small bells the dancer ties around his or her ankles. The Kathak bells are different from those of other Indian dance styles, as they are not affixed to a pad or strip of leather, but rather are individually woven along a thick string. The usual number of bells is 100 on each ankle, although for the initial stages of learning or for children, 25 and 50 belled strings are widely available to allow the dancer to get used to them.

There is a more or less accepted upper ceiling of 150 bells on each ankle. Greater figures than this tend to involve the topmost circle of bells being tied further and further up a dancer's calf. This is generally regarded as unsuitable, because it is at some distance from the point of impact, giving rise to the upper levels of bells being prone to delayed sounding given the intervening space and amount of leg. Greater numbers are also unnecessarily difficult to control since they are more likely to sound at unwanted moments, being affected by the movement of the whole of the lower leg, rather than just the ankle.

A typical Kathak ghungroo set looks like this:

Costume

Kathak is a wonderful blend of Hindu and Muslim culture. The costumes are very gorgeous for both Hindu (Lahenga-Choli) and Muslim - (Churidar-Kameez-Vest) called Angrakha.

As the dance style itself has changed to reflect the different regions and cultures in which it found itself, so too has the costume and performance dress of the dancers.

PS: As a rule, the dancer should be tied from waist when performing Kathak.

Female costume



Traditional (and perhaps more specifically Hindu) costume sometimes consists of a sari, whether worn in an everyday style, or tied up to allow greater freedom of movement during dance. However, more commonly, the costume is a lehenga-choli combination, with an optional odhni or veil. The lehenga is loose ankle-length skirt, and the choli is a tight fitting blouse, usually short-sleeved. Both can be highly ornately embroidered or decorated. 


The lehenga is sometimes adapted to a special dance variety, similar to a long ghaghra, so that during spins, the skirt flares out dramatically. The ghaghra is a long, very full, gathered skirt with a broad gold or silver border. Narrow silver or gold bands radiate all the way from waist to hem. The choli, worn with the ghaagra, is usually of a contrasting color and has embroidered sleeve-bands.





Mughal costume for women consists of an angarkha (from the Sanskrit anga-rakshaka 'limb-keeper') on the upper body. The design is akin to a chudidaar kameez, but is somewhat tighter fitting above the waist, and the 'skirt' portion explicitly cut on the round to enhance the flare of the lower half during spins. The skirt may also be cut on the round but beginning just below the bust; this style is known as 'Anarkali' after the eponymous dancer who popularised it. 

Beneath the top, the legs are covered by the chudidaar or figure hugging trousers folded up giving the look of cloth bangles. Optional accessories are a small peaked cap and a bandi or small waistcoat to enhance the bust-line. A belt made of zari or precious stones is sometimes also worn on the waist.

Male costume

The traditional costume for men is to be bare-chested. Below the waist is the dhoti, usually tied in the Bengal style, that is with many pleats and a fan finish to one of the ends (although it is not unknown for dancers to tie the garment more simply). There is the option of wearing a men's bandi too.

The Mughal costume is kurta-churidar. The kurta can be a simple one, or again, adapted for dance to incorporate wider flare, but is usually at least knee-length. Men may also wear an angarkha (see costume, below). Particularly older variety costumes include the small peaked cap too.