ABSTRACT
Santiniketan, the peace hermitage of Rabindranath Tagore, boasts of a tradition of dance, the Rabindranritya. It is an outcome of the tradition of Rabindrasangit, the songs by Rabindranath. The visuals on Rabindrasangit were an attempt of Rabindranath to express his words in the universal language of dance. We find him elaborating his idea before a performance of Shapmochan in Colombo. Way back in 1899 Rabindranath witnessed Vasantotsava in Tripura. Here Manipuri dances were presented. The graceful movements coupled with devotion were not only a treat for Rabindranath but also an eye opener to the possibilities of the art of dance at a time when dance was a prohibited practice in society. Rabindranath decided to have a Manipuri dance teacher for the boys in Santiniketan so that the practice of this dance would bring about lucidity in the muscles and serve the purpose of interesting exercises for the boys.
