A Dance Lover's Guide to the Margazhi Season in Chennai

The Margazhi season, also called the December season, is Chennai's annual festival of Carnatic music and classical dance, held by the city's sabhas around December and January. For Bharatanatyam lovers it is the best time of year to watch many dancers and styles in a few weeks, often for free in the daytime slots.

What is the Margazhi season?

Margazhi is a month in the Tamil calendar that falls roughly from mid-December to mid-January. It is considered a sacred month. In many Tamil homes, women draw large kolams, designs made with rice flour or coloured powder, at the doorstep before dawn, and early mornings are associated with devotional singing, including Andal's Thiruppavai.

Alongside these customs, Chennai hosts a dense calendar of performances. Sabhas, the cultural associations that organise concerts, run programmes from morning to night across many halls. The season is often loosely called "Margazhi" even though the programmes usually begin in December and some continue into January.

A short history of the December season

The season grew around Chennai's sabhas in the 20th century. The Music Academy, founded in 1928, became central to it through its annual conference and concerts. Other sabhas, among them Narada Gana Sabha and Krishna Gana Sabha, added their own series, and over the decades the number of organisers and venues grew considerably.

The season also connects to the wider story of Bharatanatyam's revival. In the 1920s and 1930s, figures such as E. Krishna Iyer and Rukmini Devi Arundale worked to bring the dance, then known as Sadir, to concert platforms in Madras. Rukmini Devi founded Kalakshetra in 1936. Our article on the history of Bharatanatyam covers this period in more detail.

The dance side of the season

Music dominates the schedule, but dance has a strong and growing place. Many sabhas include Bharatanatyam recitals within their series, and several run dedicated dance festivals. You will also see other classical forms such as Kuchipudi, Odissi and Mohiniyattam, which makes the season a good chance to compare styles; our article on Bharatanatyam and other classical dances is a useful companion.

Programmes range from senior artists presenting a full margam to young dancers in shorter slots. Some sabhas also hold lecture-demonstrations, where an artist explains a concept and illustrates it on stage. For students, these can be as valuable as recitals.

How to find dance programmes

• Sabha schedules. Each sabha publishes its own programme, usually on its website, on social media and in printed booklets available at the venue.
• Newspapers and listings. Chennai's newspapers carry daily season listings and reviews during December.
• Daytime slots. Morning and afternoon programmes, often given to younger artists, are frequently free to attend. Evening slots at the larger sabhas are more often ticketed or reserved for season pass holders.
• Your teacher. Ask your guru which dancers and items are worth seeing. Teachers often know who is presenting a strong varnam or a rarely performed piece.

Check schedules close to the date, since timings and line-ups can change.

Etiquette at a sabha

Sabha audiences are knowledgeable and generally quiet during performances. A few habits will help you fit in:

• Arrive before the recital starts. If you are late, wait at the back until an item ends before taking a seat.
• Switch phones to silent and keep screens dim.
• Follow the venue's rules on photography; many do not allow it, and flash is distracting for dancers.
• Applaud at the end of an item, not in the middle of a passage of abhinaya, the expressive storytelling.
• If you must leave, do it between items.
• Many sabhas have canteens. Eat there or outside, not in the hall.

A practical plan for students and families

The number of programmes can feel overwhelming. A simple plan works better than trying to see everything.

1. Pick three or four recitals over the season instead of many in one day. Daytime slots suit younger children.
2. Watch the varnam closely. It is the centrepiece of the margam and the item where you see a dancer's full range. Our guide to the margam explains what to look for.
3. Notice the bani. A bani is a stylistic school. Try to see dancers from different banis, such as Pandanallur, Vazhuvoor, Thanjavur, Kalakshetra and Melattur, and compare the depth of araimandi, the half-seated stance, the shape of the arms and the approach to abhinaya. Our article on the Pandanallur style gives a reference point.
4. Listen to the orchestra. Watch how the nattuvanar's cymbals and spoken syllables guide the dancer. Our article on nattuvangam explains the role.
5. Keep a small notebook. Students can note the raga and tala of each item, an adavu they recognised, and one moment of expression they remember. Bring these notes to class.

Students at Mayura Natyalaya, where weekend classes are taught in the Pandanallur style, may find the season especially useful for seeing how the items they are learning are performed by experienced dancers.

Getting to the sabhas from west Chennai and Porur

Many of the best-known sabhas are in central and south Chennai neighbourhoods such as Mylapore, Alwarpet and T. Nagar. From Porur and other parts of west Chennai, that means a cross-city trip, so a little planning helps.

• December evenings can be very busy on the roads around popular venues, so allow generous time and aim to arrive early.
• Parking near the larger sabhas can be limited during peak programmes. Cabs, autos or shared rides are often simpler.
• If you plan to see two programmes in a day, choose venues close to each other.
• Carry water, a light shawl for air-conditioned halls, and some cash for canteens and booklets.

Families who live in Porur and nearby areas and want to begin learning after the season can find details of our weekend Bharatanatyam classes in Porur, held at Elite Nest Play School, Gandhi Nagar.