Music, Cinema and Dance

The vibrant and colourful Indian culture is a culture that finds its ultimate expression in music, cinema and dance. With Indian Classical music said to be one of the oldest unbroken musical traditions in the world, there is an incredible amount of history to this art form. With exotic instruments like the sitar, sarod, surbahar, tanpura, bansuri, shehnai, sarangi, santoor, pakhavaj and tabla and unusual rhythms, Indian music holds a curious appeal to the Western ear. An integral part of the culture, musical performances are easy to find in India, and well worth seeking out. Synonymous with Indian classical music is the beautiful art form of classical Indian dance. Developed over thousands of years, India has a rich heritage of fascinating folk dances and the bright, colourful and energetic performances are a delight to visitors. Of course no trip to India is complete without a look at the amazing culture of Indian cinema. With as many as 1000 Indian films being produced annually, India is recognised as the world’s largest producer of cinema. These Bollywood productions have permeated the Indian landscape and provide visitors with a taste of Indian popular culture in its purest form.