Gotipua Dance

The gotipua dance tradition came into being in the 16th century. Young boys dressed in female garb danced for audiences. The classical Orissi dance today developed from this gotipua tradition. The goti puas are boy dancers who dress up as girls. They are the students of the akhadas, or gymnasia, established by Ramachandradeva in Puri, in the periphery of the temple. As they were offshoots of the akhada system, goti puas also came to be known as akhada pilas – boys attached to akhadas. Read More...