A rich part of the Indian culture is centered around the arts, especially the expression of oneself through dance. Of the various forms of dance, there are five well-known classical dances, one for each of the elements. Odissi, for the element of water, Mohiniattam, for the element of air and Bharatanatyam, for the element of fire, are three of the five. 

The ancient dance Bharatanatyam is centered around devotion to the Hindu deities and was founded originally in the temples. It was a dance taught by the male gurus to Hindu women and performed in the temples to the deities. Set to Carnatic (a state in Southern India) music, Bharatanatyam is said to be the embodiment of music in visual form (a ceremony) and an act of devotion. It is believed that dance and music are inseparable forms; only with Sangeetam (words or syllables set to raga or melody) can dance be conceptualized.

The word Bharatanatyam can be broken down and translated to Sanskrit to truly understand the meaning of the dance. The first syllable, Bha is for Bhava or abhinaya/expression. The second, Ra is for raga or melody and the third, Ta, is for tala or rhythm. The word natya is Sanskrit for the art of sacred dance-drama that was brought to the public stage at the beginning of the 20th century.