Indian modern dance is often mistaken for western dance. However, it is not so, Indian modern dance is a combination of western and Indian steps. It is obviously a recent entry into Indian dance. It was formed by Uday Shankar brother of Pandit Ravi Shankar, the famous sitar maestro. Although there are others who have contributed towards the development of Indian Modern Dance, Uday Shankar is known as the father of Indian Modern dance.
The costumes, expression, make up nothing resembles Indian classical style and has free style dancing. Lack of script, musical composition or literature requires the Choreographer to create their own artwork. Hence, how good the final result turns out to be depends on the creativity of the Choreographer.
It basically has fast music with matching steps. This is one big reason why it has gained popularity with the younger generation. In India, one can see a strong glimpse of Indian Modern Dance in Hindi cinema.? We can see a good example of Indian Modern Dancing in Hindi movies like `Taal`, `Dil Toh Pagal Hain` etc.
Although, Indian Modern dancing is the latest entry into Indian dancing it`s already making its mark between Indians and Westerners.? This is in spite of the hassle the experienced dancers have to handle while choreographing a dance. They have to come up with a suitable theme and work on the music, costumes, and steps. All this requires passion, team work, creativity from the entire group.