JayashreeSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Mood: Keeravani leans karuna, Jayashree leans varied.
Carnatic raga
Keeravani
The harmonic minor scale; widely used in film and fusion music.
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- Melakarta
- 21 Keeravani
- Jati
- Sampurna–Sampurna
- Notes
- 7 of 12
- Movement
- Vakra (zig-zag)
- Time
- Any time
- Rasa
- Karuna
Your guide to Keeravani
New to classical music — moods, stories, film songs and simple listening.
Start listening
Press play to hear the notes of Keeravani, rising then falling.
Its mood
Karuna. Traditionally heard at any time.
Film songs you may know ↓New to classical music?
Keeravani, explained simply
Think of a raga as more than a scale: a set of rules and a personality. Keeravani has its own notes, its own favourite phrases, its own time of day and its own mood, the way a person has a recognisable voice and way of talking.
How it feels
Keeravani sounds soft and wistful, in a mood closer to a Western minor key. Its emotional colour is tenderness and sorrow, the feeling of a sad song that still comforts you. Traditionally it can be performed at any hour, because Indian musicians believe each raga matches the feeling of a certain hour or season.
How to recognise it
- The melody zig-zags instead of climbing straight up a ladder. It takes little turns and steps back before moving on, which gives it a winding, conversational shape.
- Hum the scale along with the play button above a few times. Once the shape of those notes is in your ear, you'll start spotting it in songs and concerts.
Its beauty
The harmonic minor scale; widely used in film and fusion music. The beauty of Keeravani comes from patience: a good performer doesn't rush through the scale but lingers, bending into notes and letting each phrase breathe, so the mood builds slowly until it fills the room.
What makes it different
- Kalyana Vasantham, Keeranavali, Gaganabhoopalam use the very same notes. Ragas aren't just scales: the difference lies in which notes are stressed, which phrases are used and how the melody moves. That's why two ragas built from the same notes can feel completely different.
- Across the North–South divide, Kirwani (Hindustani) uses the same notes. Listening to both side by side shows how the two traditions shape the same material differently.
- In Carnatic music, notes are rarely held still. They wobble, slide and bend (called gamakas), and those shakes are as much a part of the raga's identity as the notes themselves.
Listening exercise: Try this: press "Full scale" above, then open one of the recordings below. In the first few minutes, see if you can hear the melody circling back to Sa. Once you catch it, you've started to recognise Keeravani.
History & evolution
Origin
Made popular by Tyagaraja's 'Kaligiyunte'. Later it travelled north as Kirwani and into film music worldwide.
The 72-melakarta system was devised by Venkatamakhin in his treatise Chaturdandi Prakasika (c. 1660). It is a mathematical grid that lists every possible seven-note scale built from Carnatic swara variants.
The melakarta names used today, encoded with the Katapayadi system so each name reveals its number, were standardised later by Govindacharya in the 18th century. Many melakartas existed only on paper until composers like Muthuswami Dikshitar and later Koteeswara Iyer wrote pieces in all 72.
The Carnatic Trinity of the 18th–19th centuries (Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar and Syama Sastri) gave lasting shape to most popular ragas through their compositions. Their kritis remain the standard reference for how each raga should move.
Looking for more history…
Scale
Arohana (ascent) · 7 notes
S R2 G2 M1 P D1 N3 S
- Devanagari
- स रि₂ ग₂ म₁ प ध₁ नि₃ स
- Tamil
- ஸ ரி₂ க₂ ம₁ ப த₁ நி₃ ஸ
- Telugu
- స రి₂ గ₂ మ₁ ప ద₁ ని₃ స
- Kannada
- ಸ ರಿ₂ ಗ₂ ಮ₁ ಪ ದ₁ ನಿ₃ ಸ
Avarohana (descent) · 7 notes
S N3 D1 P M1 G2 R2 S
- Devanagari
- स नि₃ ध₁ प म₁ ग₂ रि₂ स
- Tamil
- ஸ நி₃ த₁ ப ம₁ க₂ ரி₂ ஸ
- Telugu
- స ని₃ ద₁ ప మ₁ గ₂ రి₂ స
- Kannada
- ಸ ನಿ₃ ದ₁ ಪ ಮ₁ ಗ₂ ರಿ₂ ಸ
Synthesised with Sa = A3. A real performance uses gamakas, meends and phrasing that a bare scale can't capture.
Notes on the octave
S
C
r
C#
R
D
g
D#
G
E
M
F
M#
F#
P
G
d
G#
D
A
n
A#
N
B
| Swara | Interval from Sa | Western (Sa = C) |
|---|---|---|
| Shadjam | Unison | C |
| Chatushruti Rishabham (R2) / Shuddha Gandharam (G1) | Major 2nd | D |
| Shatshruti Rishabham (R3) / Sadharana Gandharam (G2) | Minor 3rd | D# |
| Shuddha Madhyamam (M1) | Perfect 4th | F |
| Panchamam | Perfect 5th | G |
| Shuddha Dhaivatam (D1) | Minor 6th | G# |
| Kakali Nishadam (N3) | Major 7th | B |
Character
Jati (Sampurna–Sampurna). The ascent uses 7 distinct notes and the descent 7. Audava = 5, Shadava = 6, Sampurna = 7.
Vakra (zig-zag) movement. The scale doubles back on itself, so phrases have to follow its characteristic turns, not run straight up or down.
Parent scale. Melakarta 21 sits in chakra 4 of 12 and uses shuddha madhyamam (M1). Keeravani is a parent (melakarta) scale with all seven notes in strict order.
Time (Any time). Not tied to a particular time; often placed by convention at a set point in a concert.
Karuna
Compassion, pathos and sorrow.
Notable compositions
- Kaligiyunte (Tyagaraja)
Listen
Each link opens a YouTube or Spotify search for this raga by the instrument or artist.
Vocal
Flute (Venu)
Veena
Violin
Nadaswaram
Same notes in Hindustani music
These ragas use exactly the same notes, though their phrasing and ornaments differ.
Ragas with the same notes
Same notes, but a different character because of emphasis, movement and phrasing.
Why this time of day?
Keeravani is associated with: Any time.
- In Carnatic music, the time of day is a gentle custom rather than a strict rule. Most ragas can be sung at any concert, and the time linked to a raga usually comes from temple rituals and old practice.
- Keeravani has no fixed time and is sung freely in concerts.
Close ragas & how they differ
Ragas that sound most like Keeravani, and how to tell them apart.
RishipriyaSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Coming down: Keeravani descends S N3 D1 P M1 G2 R2 S, while Rishipriya descends S' N3 P M1 G2 R2 S.
- Rishipriya uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- Mood: Keeravani leans karuna, Rishipriya leans varied.
Kalyana VasanthamSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Going up: Keeravani climbs S R2 G2 M1 P D1 N3 S, while Kalyana Vasantham climbs S G2 M1 D1 N3 S'.
- Kalyana Vasantham uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- They belong to different times: Keeravani is sung in the any time, Kalyana Vasantham in the evening.
KeeranavaliSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Coming down: Keeravani descends S N3 D1 P M1 G2 R2 S, while Keeranavali descends S' P M1 G2 R2 S.
- Keeranavali uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- Mood: Keeravani leans karuna, Keeranavali leans varied.
GaganabhoopalamSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Going up: Keeravani climbs S R2 G2 M1 P D1 N3 S, while Gaganabhoopalam climbs S M1 G2 M1 P D1 N3.
- Coming down: Keeravani descends S N3 D1 P M1 G2 R2 S, while Gaganabhoopalam descends S N3 D1 M1 G2 R2 S.
- Mood: Keeravani leans karuna, Gaganabhoopalam leans varied.
HamsapancamaSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Going up: Keeravani climbs S R2 G2 M1 P D1 N3 S, while Hamsapancama climbs S G2 M1 P N3 D1 N3 P S'.
- Coming down: Keeravani descends S N3 D1 P M1 G2 R2 S, while Hamsapancama descends S' N3 D1 M1 G2 R2 S.
- Mood: Keeravani leans karuna, Hamsapancama leans varied.
Other ragas from 21 Keeravani
Film songs in this raga
Bollywood (Hindi)
These Hindi film songs are in Kirwani, the Hindustani counterpart of Keeravani.
- YouTubeSpotify
Mujhe teri mohabbat ka sahara
Aap Aye Bahaar Ayee (1971)
- YouTubeSpotify
Gham uthane ke liye
Mere Huzoor (1968)
Other Indian films (Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali, Marathi)
Top Bollywood songTop Tamil songTop Telugu songTop Malayalam songTop Kannada songTop Bengali songTop Marathi song
Film songs often take liberties with a raga, so treat these as "based on" rather than strict renditions.
Discussion
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Notation: Hindustani komal notes are lowercase (r g d n), M# = tivra Ma, ' = upper octave. Carnatic numbers mark swara variants (R1, G3, …).