The Harappan dancing girl sculpture shows, how old is the tradition ofNāṭya viz. dance, drama and music is in India. Sāmaveda is dedicated primarily to music, this again shows the importance of performing arts in ancient India.With such a rich legacy of dance, drama and music, India has given various great scriptures of this tradition to the world. The Nāṭya śāstra is such a scripture only. This scripture had been accepted as fifth Veda, as the same is gist of Vedas. According to scripture itself, “The recitative (pāṭhya) he took from the Ṛgveda, the song from the Sāmaveda, the Histrionic Representation (abhinaya) from the Yajurveda and Sentiments (rasa) from the Atharvaveda and thus was created the Nāṭyaveda.” (Ch-1). With thirty-six chapters and over six thousand verses, this is an encyclopaedia of NāṭyaVidyā (Vidyā of dance, drama and music).\n