Benares

The Benares (Varanasi) gharana of Kathak was developed by Pandit Janakiprasad in the 18th century, a saintly teacher who lived during this period and served as the gharana's founder. Janakiprasad was a resident of Varanasi and the brother of the famous tabla player Pandit Ram Sahay. It is assumed that this style was born in Varanasi and then traveled to Jaipur and Lucknow, making it one of the earliest formalized Kathak traditions. By the 19th century, it had evolved as one of the three major known styles of Kathak alongside Jaipur and Lucknow gharanas.

Unlike other traditions of the Kathak gharana that developed under royal patronage, the Benares gharana was uniquely developed within temples and religious institutes, which provided it with a distinctive devotional basis and a strong attachment to sacred art. This temple-based origin fundamentally shaped the gharana's character, making it "meditation in motion" with spiritual expression, clarity of rhythm, and devotional narration as its defining features. Janakiprasad held that dance was a religious course, a way of meditation and devotion, and he focused on rhythmic clarity, foot precision, and the exclusive use of Natwari bols—rhythmic syllables based on dance movements rather than percussion instruments.

The gharana's lineage continued through Janakiprasad's three main disciples: Chunnilal, Delhi Ram, and Ganeshilal, who passed down the dance to their children. Most writings about Kathak history indicate that the Benares gharana eventually shifted to Lahore after partition, with its most significant exponents being Pandit Gopal Das, Ashiq Hussain, Hazari Lal, Gopal's son Krishna Kumar, and Sunayana Hazarilal. The credit for establishing the Benares gharana in Kathak also goes to Acharya Pandit Sukhdev Maharaj, whose daughter Sitara Devi and grandson Gopi Krishna became the most famous exponents of this tradition.

Guru Sitara Devi, born in Varanasi in 1922, trained under the guidance of three famous Kathak gurus—Shri Acchan Maharaj, Shri Shambhu Maharaj, and Shri Lacchu Maharaj—though her dancing style consisted of both Benares and Lucknow gharanas, a combination of 'naaz' (coquettishness), 'nakhre' (graceful temperament), and 'nazakat' (delicacy). Her nephew Gopi Krishna was also an exponent of the Benares gharana style of Kathak, with their maternal grandfather Pandit Sukhdev Maharaj serving as a teacher of the dance form. Through these artists, the Benares gharana has been recognized for its graceful and fluid movements, intricate footwork, and subtle expressions that focus on abhinaya, or expressive storytelling with spiritual depth.