Article - The Instagramization of Indian classical dance by Dr. Rohini Dandavate

Social media has given Indian classical dance something previous generations never had: an immediate, global, and largely uncontrolled platform for visibility. A dancer in Bhubaneswar, Mumbai, Chennai, New York, or California can now reach thousands of people without waiting for a festival, Sabha, or institution to provide a stage. This became particularly evident during the pandemic years, when social media became an important means of maintaining visibility, communicating with audiences, and continuing artistic engagement. Since then, its role in the dance world has only continued to grow, bringing enormous opportunities for artists.

As someone who has spent several decades learning, performing, teaching, and choreographing within the Odissi tradition, I find this development both exciting and worthy of reflection. I have seen how access to dance has expanded through the screen. Artists who might once have remained known only within a particular geographical or cultural community can now be discovered by audiences across the world. At the same time, I have begun to wonder what happens to a form whose richness often lies in its gradual unfolding when it enters a medium designed for speed.

Every medium has its own visual grammar. Instagram and short-form video reward immediacy, visual impact, repetition, novelty, and compressed viewing. Classical dance, on the other hand, often requires time for development - a repertoire that unfolds gradually, a musical structure that opens incrementally, with subtlety and anticipation, and a relationship between the dancer and live audience that develops over time. 

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