Odissi and Indian Dance Books recommendations

The following books are some of my favorite books I recommend to read and refer to while studying Odissi Dance. Some of these book are available on my site, some are available in amazon, and some you can find in other places online or in book stores.

• Odissi Dance Pathfinder Vol. 1 (Illustrated)

Odissi Research Centre, Bhubaneswar.

Third Edition, 2005. Paper Cover.

This book lays the fundamental principles of Odissi Dance, and it is an excellent resource for the beginner and advanced Odissi student.

• Odissi Dance Path Finder Vol. 2 (Illustrated)

Odissi Research Centre, Bhubaneswar.

First Edition, 2005. Paper Cover.

This book lays the fundamental principles of Odissi Dance, and it is an excellent resource for the beginner and advanced Odissi student.

• The mirror of gesture, being the Abhinaya darpana of Nandikeśvara (1917) Paperback (Oct. 21, 2009) by Nandikesvara

The Abinaya Darpana is the main text out of the ancient texts informing Odissi Dance. It is a small book and includes many of the key aspects of Odissi movement, such as the mudras and eye, neck, and head movements.

• The Gitagovinda of Jayadeva, Love Song of the Dark Lord [Paperback]

Barbara Stoler Miller [Author]

This is my favorite translation of the Gitagovind, the famous poetic work that is the subject of the majority of Odissi Dance Choreographies. Learning and understanding the Gitegovind is instrumental in gaining a deeper feeling for Odissi.

• Neo Classical Odissi Dance [Hardcover]

Ratna Roy [Author], David J Capers [Illustrator]

This book includes valuable and rare to come by information about the history of Odissi, as well as other classical dances of India. It offers more insight into the tradition and roots of Odissi dance then any other book I read in this field.

• A Yoga of Indian Classical Dance: The Yogini’s Mirror [Paperback]

Roxanne Kamayani Gupta [Author]

This book is the real life story of the author. Written as a fascinating documentary of the life of a Yogini – Dancer. Inspirational and captivating!

• Rethinking Odissi [Hardcover]

Dinanmath Pathy [Author]

Insightful collection of articles about various topics related to Odissi Dance.

• Indian Dance: The Ultimate Metaphor [Hardcover]

Shanta Serbjeet Singh (Editor)

Inspirational! Stunning photography. A great coffee-table book.

• Indian Classical Dance: Tradition in Transition [Hardcover]

Leela Venkataraman [Author], Avinash Pasricha [Author]

Inspirational! Stunning photography. A great coffee-table book.

• ODISSI DANCE What, Why & How…

MADUMITA RAUT [Author]

Good coverage of the fundamentals of Odissi Dance.

• Classical Dance (Eternal India) [Hardcover]

Ashish Mohan Khokar [Author]

This small book has concise and lovely descriptions of all the classical dances of India. Great introduction book for Indian Dance.