The Idea of Dance is a culmination of Kathak Guru Pandit Shyamal Maharaj's five-decade-long career as star performer and then beloved Guru to thousands of students. An alumnus of Visva-Bharati, Shantiniketan, and Kathak Kendra, New Delhi, Pandit Shyamal Maharaj has developed a unique style of Kathak, based on the Lucknow Gharana. This book exemplifies the Guru–Shishya parampara as the renowned Guru shares his in-depth knowledge of dance through it with students of Indian classical dance based in India and abroad.

The Idea of Dance is based on the syllabus provided by Pracheen Kala Kendra, Chandigarh, and various universities and is meant for students from Prarambhik Part I to those in their Seventh Year of Indian classical dance as well as for all others who have a deep interest in Indian classical dance and wish to acquire knowledge about it.