<p>Bharatanatyam has a reconstructed history of revivalism where this art form underwent a significant transformation from being a temple dance to an elite classical dance. This paper explores how Bharatanatyam education and performance are increasingly shaped by socio-economic disparities, particularly class-based access and the commercialisation of training and performance opportunities. Drawing on qualitative narrative interviews with 33 Bharatanatyam practitioners across age groups and regions, the study adopts an interpretive methodological framework to examine lived experiences and class-based inequalities. The findings of this research highlight on two major trends of how Bharatanatyam is commercialised, one through the debut stage performance (<i>Arangetram</i>) and other through exuberant training charges by dance teachers (<i>Gurus</i>). The results of this research established that these new trends in the present era have further entrenched social class inequalities in learning this art. The study contributes to the growing body of research on the sociology of dance by offering updated, field-based insights into how cultural capital, economic privilege, and institutional networks shape classical dance education in India and beyond. It also highlights the intersections of caste, class, and gender in sustaining or challenging hierarchies within the contemporary Bharatanatyam landscape.</p>