Day-696 | Daily MCQs | UPSC Prelims | ART AND CULTURE

Answer: A
Explanation:
Statement 1 is incorrect: It is essentially a solo dance performance by women that was further developed by Vadivelu in the 19th century and gained prominence under the rulers of Travancore in the present state of Kerala.
Statement 2 is incorrect: Atavakul and atavus are the 40 basic dance movements in Mohiniyattam. The tribhanga posture is related to the Odissi dance form.
Statement 3 is correct: There is a marked absence of thumping of footsteps while the footwork is gentle in this dance form.
Additional information:
● Mohiniyattam or the Dance of an Enchantress (‘Mohini’ meaning beautiful woman and ‘attam’ means dance), is essentially a solo dance performance by women that was further developed by Vadivelu in the 19th century.
● The patronage of Swathi Thirunal the Travancore ruler in the 19th century, is notable. After it had fallen to obscurity, the famous Malayali poet V. N. Menon reviewed it along with Kalyani Amma.
Some of the features of Mohiniyattam are:
● Mohiniyattam combines the grace and elegance of Bharatnatyam with the vigour of Kathakali.
● Mohiniyattam generally narrates the story of the feminine dance of Vishnu. It has its own Nritta and Nritya aspects like that of other classical dances.
● The Lasya aspect (beauty, grace) of dance is dominant in a Mohiniattam recital. Hence, it is mainly performed by female dancers.
● The dance is accompanied by music and songs. Costume is of special importance in Mohiniyattam, with white and off-white being the principal colours and presence of gold coloured brocade designs.
● There is no elaborate facial make-up. The dancer wears a leather strap with bells (Ghungroo) on her ankles.
● The element of air is symbolised through a Mohiniyattam performance. ‘Atavakul or Atavus’ is the collection of forty basic dance movements. Musical instruments used are: cymbals, veena, drums, flute, etc.
● Famous proponents: Sunanda Nair, Kalamandalam Kshemavathy, Madhuri Amma, Jayaprabha Menon etc.

Answer: B
Explanation:
Given below is correctly matched pairs:
UNESCO’S List of Intangible Cultural Heritage – States
1) Mudiyettu – Kerala
2) Kalbelia – Rajasthan
3) Sankirtana – Manipur
4) Ramman – Uttarakhand
Additional information:
UNESCO’S List of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH)
● Cultural heritage does not end at monuments and collections of objects.
● Oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, celebratory events, knowledge, and practices about nature and the universe, or knowledge and abilities to make traditional crafts are all examples of living expressions inherited from predecessors and passed down to our successors.
● Communities, organizations, and in some cases individuals recognize practices, representations, expressions, knowledge, abilities, as well as instruments, items, and artifacts linked with intangible cultural heritage as part of their cultural legacy.
● UNESCO created its lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage with the goal of better protecting and raising awareness about key intangible cultural heritages across the globe.
● The initiative seeks to raise awareness of the need of preserving intangible heritage by compiling a list of the many oral and intangible riches of humanity across the world.
Two lists have been created by the UNESCO program:
1) The Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity – This list includes cultural practices and expressions that assist to highlight the variety of this heritage and raise awareness of its significance.
2) The List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding – This list is made up of cultural aspects that concerned groups and countries consider vulnerable and in need of immediate protection.
The List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding
● If the sustainability of an intangible cultural heritage expression is threatened, despite the community, group, or government’s best efforts, it might be nominated for inclusion on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.
● Even though the elements were feasible at the time of nomination, imminent dangers to specific pieces of intangible cultural heritage that may jeopardize their continuity are adequate reasons for inclusion in some situations.
● A nomination dossier must be based on a safeguarding strategy that was established with the input of as many heritage practitioners and guardian groups as feasible and that requires their informed, explicit, and prior approval.

Answer: A
Explanation:
The Rajasthani language is not included in the list of the scheduled languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
The Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution consists of the list of 22 languages: Assamese, (2) Bengali, (3) Gujarati, (4) Hindi, (5) Kannada, (6) Kashmiri, (7) Konkani, (8) Malayalam, (9) Manipuri, (10) Marathi, (11) Nepali, (12) Oriya, (13) Punjabi, (14) Sanskrit, (15) Sindhi, (16) Tamil, (17) Telugu, (18) Urdu (19) Bodo, (20) Santhali, (21) Maithili and (22) Dogri.
Of these languages, 14 were initially included in the Constitution. Sindhi language was added in 1967. Thereafter three more languages viz., Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali were included in 1992. Subsequently Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Santhali were added in 2004.
Additional information:
The Constitutional provisions related to the Eighth Schedule are:
● Article 344(1): It requires the President to form a Commission with a Chairman and members representing the various languages specified in the Eighth Schedule to recommend the use of Hindi for official purposes of the Union after five years and ten years from the Constitution’s commencement.
● Article 351: Under the Article, the Union is responsible for promoting the Hindi language and developing it to serve as a medium of expression for India’s composite culture. This includes assimilating forms, styles, and expressions from Hindustani and other Indian languages listed in the Eighth Schedule without interfering with its genius, and drawing on other languages as needed. Thus, it appears that the Eighth Schedule was designed to encourage the progressive use of Hindi, as well as to enrich and promote the language.
However, it can be noted that there are no fixed criteria for any language to be considered for inclusion in the Eighth Schedule.

Answer: D
Explanation:
In the context of ancient India, the terms ‘Pustapala’ and ‘Karanika’ refer to record keepers of land transactions during the Gupta Period.
Additional information:
About Gupta Empire:
● After the Mauryas, Guptas led the political unification of North India and covered much of the Indian subcontinent.
● The Gupta age was considered to be the second glorious epoch in the annals of ancient India.
● Also, the Gupta period was acclaimed by historians as the period of ‘Efflorescence’ or the ‘Classical age’ or the ‘Golden age’.
● The Gupta Empire stretched across northern, central and parts of southern India between 320 and 550 CE.
● Not much is known about the early days of this Gupta dynasty. However, the travelogues of Fa Hien (circa 337 – 422 CE), Hiuen Tsang (602 – 664 CE) and Yijing (635 – 713 CE) prove to be invaluable in this respect.
● Sri Gupta founded the Gupta Empire c. 240-280 CE, and was succeeded by his son, Ghatotkacha, c. 280-319 CE
Some other terms of the Gupta empire
● Uparika– He was directly appointed by the king as a provincial governor.
● Kumaramatyas– A link between the central and the provincial administration under the Guptas was provided by the officers called Kumaramatyas and Ayuktas. Kumaramatyas was a body of top-ranking officials attached not only to the king but also to the crown prince and sometimes placed in charge of the district.
● Gopasramin– In Samudraguptas period an officer working as akshapataladhikrita. Their function was to enter numerous matters in the accounts register, recover royal dues and check embezzlement and recover fines.
● Sandhivigrahika-The foreign minister, minister of war and peace. First appeared under the rule of Samudragupta.
● Mahabaldikarta-Commander-in-Chief.
● Mahapratihara– Chief of palace guards.
● Vishaya– Vishayas were divided into smaller parts called Vithis which were the villages and consisted of the lowest unit of administration.
● Mahattama, Mahattaka, and Mahattara– Elder who assisted the Gramika in the village administration.
● Agharikas– During the reign of Harsha, Agharikas looked after the land given in charity.
● Samantas– Feudal chiefs.

Answer: A
Explanation:
Given below are correctly matched pairs:
Kingdoms – Capitals
1) Vakataka dynasty – Vatsagulma (modern Washim)
2) Maitraka dynasty – Valabhi
3) Pushyabhuti dynasty – Thanesar (Thaneshwara), later Kannauj (Kanyakubja)
Additional information:
Maitrakas – Rulers and their Contributions (Period: 475-776 AD)
● Region: Maitraka dynasty ruled in Gujarat and Saurashtra (Kathiawar) from the 5th to the 8th century CE.
● Rise: Its founder, Bhatarka, was a general who, taking advantage of the decay of the Gupta empire, established himself as ruler of Gujarat and Saurashtra with Valabhi (modern Vala) as his capital.
● Independent nature of State: Although the early Maitraka kings were loosely feudatory to the Guptas, they were, in fact, independent.
● Expansion: Under the powerful Shiladitya I, the kingdom became very influential; its rule extended into the regions of Malwa and Rajasthan. Later, however, the Maitrakas suffered at the hands of the Chalukyas and of the emperor Harsha.
Pushyabhutis of Thanesar(500-647 AD)
● Founder: The founder of the dynasty was Pushyabhuti, who was a military general under Guptas.
● Rise: After the fall of the Gupta, Pushyabhutis under Prabhakara Vardhana rose to power by defeating Hunas and had their capital at Thanesar (Thanesvara in Kurukshetra).
● Alliance with Maukharis: Prabhakara Vardhana gave his daughter Rajyasri in marriage to the Maukhari king Grahavarman of Kanauj, thus making Kanauj his ally.
● Harshavardhana: He was the most important king who ascended the throne in AD 606. While only sixteen years of age, he proved himself to be a great warrior and an able administrator.
Harshavardhana (606-647 AD)
● The Pushyabhutis rose to prominence under Harsha. Harsha ruled the kingdom as large as that of the Guptas.
● Sources:
● Literary sources: Bana’s Harshacharita and Hsuen Tsang’s Si-Yu-ki
● Epigraphical sources: Madhuban copper plate inscription, Sonpa inscription on the copper seal, Banskhera copper plate inscription, Nalanda inscription on clay seals.
● Sakalauttarapathanatha: After his accession, Harshavardhana united his kingdom with that of his widowed sister Rajayashri and shifted his capital to Kannauj and is described as the lord of the north.
● Expansion: Harsha wanted to expand in Deccan, but he was defeated by Pulakesin II, the Chalukya ruler, on the banks of river Narmada. The river thus became the southern boundary of his kingdom.
● Hsuen Tsang: A Chinese traveller visited during his reign
● He was impressed by Harsha’s patronage of Buddhism and scholarship for it.
● He spent the most time in Kannauj to learn early Buddhist scriptures.
● Other reason to shift capital: Thanesar was too close to the threats from the northwest. Kanauj was located in the rich agricultural region of the western Ganges Plain.
● Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva: On his advice, Harsha accepted the throne of Kannauj with the titles of Rajputra and Siladitya.
● Alliance with Maitrakas: Marrying his daughter with Dhruvabhatta of Maitraka.Thus, Valabhi became a subordinate ally of Harsha.