From film song to raga

From film song to raga

This path is for a listener who knows film songs well and has heard that a favourite is in a raga, without knowing what that means. It uses the songs as the way in and does not ask you to sing or read notation.

The first three guides are about structure. One covers the mukhda and antara of a Hindi film song. Two cover the pallavi, anupallavi and charanam of a Carnatic song. South Indian film songs are built on that shape. Keherwa is the rhythm cycle under most of them.

Then the raga guide explains what a raga is. The last three lessons are ragas you have heard in films: Yaman, Kirwani and Bhoop, each with songs named and a recording of our own.

How to use this path

• Pick one film song you love before you start and keep it in mind. By the fourth lesson you will know its parts and its cycle.
• Each raga guide names film songs in that raga. Play one, then play our recording, and listen for the same phrase in both.
• If a raga guide names a song you do not know, search for it on YouTube and come back. The names are the point.

The lessons

1. 1
   Mukhda and antara: how a film song is built

   explainer · 6 min

   In a typical Hindi film song, the mukhda is the returning opening section, while an antara is a verse with new words and melody. This pattern comes from Hindustani classical music; listen for the verse climbing higher, then leading back to the opening tune.

2. 2
   Pallavi, anupallavi and charanam: the three parts of a Carnatic song

   explainer · 7 min

   In a typical kriti, the main composed song form of Carnatic (South Indian classical) music, the pallavi is the opening section that returns. The anupallavi is the second section, developing the opening, while the charanam is the concluding section and usually the longest.

3. 3
   Charanam meaning: what a charanam is and how it differs from the pallavi

   explainer · 4 min

   A charanam is the concluding section of a composed song in Carnatic (South Indian classical) music, usually bringing new words and a fresh melody. The pallavi is the opening section that returns as a refrain, while the charanam develops something new before leading back to it.

4. 4
   Keherwa: the 8-beat taal of film songs, bhajans and folk

   reference · 4 min

   Keherwa is an eight-beat taal, or repeating rhythmic cycle, arranged as 4 + 4. To recognise it, listen for two groups of four, a lighter second half, and the recurring drum pattern: dha ge na ti | na ka dhin na.

5. 5
   What is a raga? A plain-language guide for listeners

   explainer · 7 min

   A raga is a melodic framework in Indian classical music for creating pieces and inventing melody during performance. Listen for four things: which notes appear, how the melody moves, where the musician lingers, and which short phrases return.

6. 6
   Raga Yaman (Kalyani)

   reference · 6 min

   Yaman is a seven-note Hindustani raga, a melodic framework, with a raised fourth; Kalyani shares its scale but uses different phrasing and ornaments. Traditionally associated with evening, Yaman can sound serene or devotional; hear its character through Ni Re Ga, starting below Sa, the home note.

7. 7
   Raga Kirwani (Keeravani)

   reference · 5 min

   Kirwani is a raga, a musical framework, using C D Eb F G Ab B when Sa, its home note, is C. Heard in concerts, light classical music and film scores, it often suggests longing; listen for Ab rising to B, then C.

8. 8
   Raga Bhoop (Mohanam)

   reference · 5 min

   Bhoop, or Bhoopali, is a raga (melodic framework) using Sa, Re, Ga, Pa and Dha; Mohanam shares its notes, but uses Carnatic phrasing and ornaments. An evening raga with a calm, devotional mood, Bhoop is often taught early; hear its character through Ga Re Sa and Dha Pa Ga.

Start with lesson 1