HYDERABAD: The Kakatiya-era 'warrior dance', which flourished between the 11th and 13th century, is set for a revival in
Telangana, with a full-fledged course on
Perini dance to be introduced in government music and dance colleges from the 2016-17 academic year.
An expert committee, constituted by the director, department of culture, and comprising principals of all government music and dance colleges, will formulate the syllabus for the Perini dance course.
It will appoint six lecturers to teach the course.
"In the United
Andhra Pradesh, the Perini dance form did not get due encouragement and support and had become a dying art form. But after the emergence of Telangana state, it has become the common desire of the public to revive and strengthen every native art form of Telangana, including Perini," read a GO issued by the youth advancement, tourism and culture department.
The Perini dance - in which 'Thandavam' is performed by male artistes and 'Lasyam' is performed by females - is called a 'warrier dance' as the army of the Kakatiyas used to perform it while preparing for battle. Jayapa, who is credited with devising the dance form, also wrote about it in 'Nritta Ratnavali'. There are also inscriptions about the dance on the Ramappa temple in Warangal, which was built in 1213 AD. The area was the capital of the Kakatiya dynasty.
In more recent times, well-known classical dance guru Nataraja Ramakrishna tried to revive the dance form until he passed away in 2011.