Guru Pankaj Charan Das, the Guru of all Gurus along with Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra, Guru Deb Prasad Das and Guru Mayadhar Raut did extensive research. They studied the Gotipuas and Maharis dance traditions, the temple sculptures of Orissa and ancient treatises in order to revive this dance tradition.
In their efforts to re-construct Odissi, the Revivalist Gurus were deeply inspired by the beautiful sculptures in the temple walls of Odisha. Odissi gives the illusion of a Sculpture In Motion. This dance is characterized by the square stance, Chowka, denoting Lord Jagannath, the main deity of Odissi and the S shaped, Tribhangi denoting Krishna.
In this dance style, the Tandava or vigorous, bold, masculine movements are interwoven with the softer, graceful, feminine Lasya movements. The Bakshachala or upper rib cage movements are skillfully combined with intrinsic foot work and typical spins. Another unique feature of Odissi is the extensive movement of the wrist and heels. Odissi music draws from both the North Indian and Carnatic or South Indian music system.