Prelims 2012 · archive
MediumHow do you distinguish between Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam dances?
- 1.Dancers occasionally speaking dialogues is found in Kuchipudi dance but not in Bharatnatyam
- 2.Dancing on the brass plate by keeping the feet on its edges is a feature of Bharatnatyam but Kuchipudi dance does not have such a form of movements.
Which of the pairs given above is/are correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) 1 only
Kuchipudi grew out of Telugu dance-dramas in which the performers sing and speak, so statement 1 is right. The brass-plate dance (tarangam), with feet on the rim of the plate, is a Kuchipudi feature, so statement 2 reverses the facts.
- ✓ 1. Kuchipudi comes from dance-dramas (Bhagavata Mela style) in which dancers also sing and speak dialogue; Bharatanatyam is a solo form without spoken dialogue.
- ✗ 2. Dancing on the edges of a brass plate (tarangam) is a well-known Kuchipudi item. Bharatanatyam does not have it, so the statement is the wrong way round.
Remember · Kuchipudi: dance-drama from Andhra Pradesh, dancers sing and speak; tarangam (dancing on a brass plate) is its speciality.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, Part I, Ch 3 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 11 · Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, Part I, Chapter 3 “This is a dance style adapted from the dance dramas enacted by Brahmin priests or Bhagavutulus”
- Britannica: Kuchipudi ↗ · reference work “Kuchipudi is indigenous to the state of Andhra Pradesh and differs from the other five classical styles by the inclusion of singing.”
Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2012, General Studies paper. UPSC did not publish an answer key for 2012: the answer shown is the one the sources above support. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 24 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·