Arangetram is a tamil word.Aranga meaning raised floor or stage and Etram meaning climbing or ascending, meaning Ascending the Stage.. It is also called Rangapravesha in Kannada, another south Indian language, Ranga meaning Stage and Pravesha meaning Enter. Ideally this should be the first public performance of an artist. After learning bharatanatyam under the guidance of an accomplished guru, this is the occasion for the proud guru to present her disciple to the public.

This is the testing time for both the guru & the shishya (disciple) as the guru's knowledge & the disciple's talent both are judged by the public Hence, the guru will decide when the disciple is ready for public appearance. At least 10 - 12 years of training is necessary to give a commendable performance.

In olden days, disciples were not allowed to wear jingles till their first public performance. In their first performance, they were made to worship the jingles, wear them & then perform. Accompaniments play a major role in the making of a memorable dance performance.

Basic accompaniments are a Singer, Mridangam player, Violin player and of course the Natuvangam. Veena, Flute and other instruments are optional