Classical Dance Practice Scenes/Songs in Indian Films

There is something charming and beautiful about classical dance practice numbers in Indian films. Perhaps it's the unassuming and flattering cotton sari wrapped around the dancer's body; I've always liked plain saris a bit more than the full, complicated costume. Or maybe it's the everyday, unadorned, simple nature of the dance that adds to its beauty. Or it could be that the dances often gets closer to their classical roots in this format. Whatever it is, I'm simply a huge fan of them in films.

Below is a list of all 34 practice numbers I can think of in Indian films where the purpose of the song or scene is not "performance" but rather informal "practice" overall. It's interesting how many of them are from the 80s and 90s, the seeming "golden era" of this type of classical performance in film. The videos below are listed in rough order of awesomeness, favorites first. If you can make it all the way to the end, consider yourself a classical dance nerd like me! (Or maybe it's just list-making nerd?) Enjoy!

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27 comments Aditi Rao Hydari, Bhanupriya, EV Saroja, Girish Karnad, Jayapradha, Kamal Hassan, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Manju Bhargavi, Mohanlal, Mohiniattam, Practice Dance, Rekha, Revathy, Shobana, Sudha Chandran, Vineeth