DeshavaliOne note apart
- Shamalangi uses Panchamam, which Deshavali does not.
- Mood: Shamalangi leans varies, Deshavali leans varied.
Carnatic raga
Shamalangi
Melakarta number 55 in the Disi chakra, a complete seven-note parent scale using prati madhyamam. Many janya ragas are derived from it.
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- Melakarta
- 55 Shamalangi (melakarta)
- Jati
- Sampurna–Sampurna
- Notes
- 7 of 12
- Movement
- Krama (straight)
- Time
- Any time
- Rasa
- Varies
Your guide to Shamalangi
New to classical music — moods, stories, film songs and simple listening.
Start listening
Press play to hear the notes of Shamalangi, rising then falling.
Its mood
Varies. Traditionally heard at any time.
Film songs you may know ↓New to classical music?
Shamalangi, explained simply
Think of a raga as more than a scale: a set of rules and a personality. Shamalangi 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
Shamalangi sounds soft and wistful, in a mood closer to a Western minor key. Its emotional colour is a character all its own. 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
- Listen for the gaps. Shamalangi never uses Ni, so the melody seems to skip over certain steps. This "missing note" sound is one of the quickest giveaways.
- It uses tivra (sharp) Ma, a note a little higher than you'd expect. It gives the music a lifting, yearning quality, as if it's leaning upward.
- 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
Melakarta number 55 in the Disi chakra, a complete seven-note parent scale using prati madhyamam. Many janya ragas are derived from it. The beauty of Shamalangi 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
- 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 missing Ni. Once you catch it, you've started to recognise Shamalangi.
History & evolution
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 M2 P D1 N1 S'
- Devanagari
- स रि₂ ग₂ म₂ प ध₁ नि₁ स•
- Tamil
- ஸ ரி₂ க₂ ம₂ ப த₁ நி₁ ஸ•
- Telugu
- స రి₂ గ₂ మ₂ ప ద₁ ని₁ స•
- Kannada
- ಸ ರಿ₂ ಗ₂ ಮ₂ ಪ ದ₁ ನಿ₁ ಸ•
Avarohana (descent) · 7 notes
S' N1 D1 P M2 G2 R2 S
- Devanagari
- स• नि₁ ध₁ प म₂ ग₂ रि₂ स
- Tamil
- ஸ• நி₁ த₁ ப ம₂ க₂ ரி₂ ஸ
- Telugu
- స• ని₁ ద₁ ప మ₂ గ₂ రి₂ స
- Kannada
- ಸ• ನಿ₁ ದ₁ ಪ ಮ₂ 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# |
| Prati Madhyamam (M2) | Augmented 4th | F# |
| Panchamam | Perfect 5th | G |
| Shuddha Dhaivatam (D1) | Minor 6th | G# |
| Chatushruti Dhaivatam (D2) / Shuddha Nishadam (N1) | Major 6th | A |
Omitted (varjya) swaras: Ni.
Character
Jati (Sampurna–Sampurna). The ascent uses 7 distinct notes and the descent 7. Audava = 5, Shadava = 6, Sampurna = 7.
Krama (straight) movement. Notes are taken in order going up and coming down.
Parent scale. Melakarta 55 sits in chakra 10 of 12 and uses prati madhyamam (M2). Shamalangi 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.
Listen
Each link opens a YouTube or Spotify search for this raga by the instrument or artist.
Vocal
Flute (Venu)
Veena
Violin
Nadaswaram
Why this time of day?
Shamalangi 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.
- Shamalangi has no fixed time and is sung freely in concerts.
Close ragas & how they differ
Ragas that sound most like Shamalangi, and how to tell them apart.
Karpoora BharaniOne note apart
- Shamalangi uses Shuddha Dhaivatam (D1), which Karpoora Bharani does not.
- Mood: Shamalangi leans varies, Karpoora Bharani leans varied.
VijayanagariOne note apart
- Shamalangi uses Shuddha Dhaivatam (D1), which Vijayanagari does not.
- Mood: Shamalangi leans varies, Vijayanagari leans varied.
VijayamalaviOne note apart
- Shamalangi uses Shatshruti Rishabham (R3), which Vijayamalavi does not.
- Vijayamalavi uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- Mood: Shamalangi leans varies, Vijayamalavi leans varied.
SeshanadamTwo notes apart
- Shamalangi uses Chatushruti Dhaivatam (D2), which Seshanadam does not.
- Seshanadam uses Kakali Nishadam (N3), which Shamalangi avoids.
- Seshanadam uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- Mood: Shamalangi leans varies, Seshanadam leans varied.
HamsabhramariTwo notes apart
- Shamalangi uses Shuddha Dhaivatam (D1), which Hamsabhramari does not.
- Hamsabhramari uses Shatshruti Dhaivatam (D3), which Shamalangi avoids.
- Hamsabhramari uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- Mood: Shamalangi leans varies, Hamsabhramari leans varied.
Film songs in this raga
Bollywood (Hindi)
No well-known Hindi film song is confidently attributed to this raga yet.
Other Indian films (Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali, Marathi)
No regional film song is confidently attributed to this raga yet.
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, …).