MalkaunsTwo notes apart
- Chandrakauns uses Shuddh Ni, which Malkauns does not.
- Malkauns uses Komal Ni, which Chandrakauns avoids.
Hindustani raga
Chandrakauns
Malkauns with shuddh Ni.
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- Thaat
- Bhairavi
- Jati
- Audava–Audava
- Notes
- 5 of 12
- Movement
- Krama (straight)
- Time
- Late night
- Rasa
- Shanta
- Vadi (main note)
- Ma (M)
- Samvadi (second note)
- Sa (S)
Your guide to Chandrakauns
New to classical music — moods, stories, film songs and simple listening.
Start listening
Press play to hear the notes of Chandrakauns, rising then falling.
Its mood
Shanta. Traditionally heard at late night.
Film songs you may know ↓New to classical music?
Chandrakauns, explained simply
Think of a raga as more than a scale: a set of rules and a personality. Chandrakauns 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
Chandrakauns sounds soft and wistful, in a mood closer to a Western minor key. Its emotional colour is calm and stillness, like sitting quietly by a lake. Traditionally it is traditionally performed in the late night, because Indian musicians believe each raga matches the feeling of a certain hour or season.
How to recognise it
- Listen for the gaps. Chandrakauns never uses Re or Pa, so the melody seems to skip over certain steps. This "missing note" sound is one of the quickest giveaways.
- It uses only five notes, like many folk tunes around the world, so it sounds simple, singable and open.
- Notice which note the musician keeps returning to and resting on: in Chandrakauns that's M, with S as its partner. These are the raga's "home base" notes after Sa.
Its beauty
Malkauns with shuddh Ni. The beauty of Chandrakauns 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
- Across the North–South divide, Kadaram (Carnatic) uses the same notes. Listening to both side by side shows how the two traditions shape the same material differently.
- In Hindustani music, a raga usually unfolds slowly. The performance often begins with a long, beat-less exploration (alaap) where the musician reveals the raga one note at a time.
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 Re. Once you catch it, you've started to recognise Chandrakauns.
History & evolution
Origin
A 20th-century creation, often attributed to Ustad Aman Ali Khan or the Kirana/Bhendibazaar circle, made by altering Malkauns's Ni.
Hindustani ragas mostly developed through oral tradition, passed guru to disciple. Medieval treatises such as Sangita Ratnakara (13th c.) and the later Raga-Ragini systems grouped them into 'families'.
In the early 20th century, V. N. Bhatkhande organised Hindustani ragas into ten thaats (parent scales). Chandrakauns is classified under Bhairavi thaat. The thaat is a modern classification, not necessarily the raga's historical origin.
Each gharana (school) interprets ragas slightly differently, so a raga's phrasing has kept evolving through the 19th and 20th centuries, and further through recordings and radio.
Looking for more history…
Scale
Arohana (ascent) · 5 notes
S g M d N S'
- Devanagari
- सा ग̱ म ध̱ नि सा•
- Bengali
- সা গা̱ মা ধা̱ নি সা•
Avarohana (descent) · 5 notes
S' N d M g S
- Devanagari
- सा• नि ध̱ म ग̱ सा
- Bengali
- সা• নি ধা̱ মা গা̱ সা
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) |
|---|---|---|
| Sa | Unison | C |
| Komal Ga | Minor 3rd | D# |
| Shuddh Ma | Perfect 4th | F |
| Komal Dha | Minor 6th | G# |
| Shuddh Ni | Major 7th | B |
Omitted (varjya) swaras: Re, Pa.
Character
Jati (Audava–Audava). The ascent uses 5 distinct notes and the descent 5. Audava = 5, Shadava = 6, Sampurna = 7.
Krama (straight) movement. Notes are taken in order going up and coming down.
Parent scale. Bhairavi thaat: Komal Re, Ga, Dha and Ni. Equivalent to the Phrygian mode and Carnatic Hanumatodi.
Time (Late night). Sung during the night prahars (roughly 9 PM–3 AM). Night ragas often stress the upper tetrachord (uttaranga).
Vadi and samvadi. M is the king note, the most emphasised and returned to. S is the minister, the second most important note.
Shanta
Peace, tranquility and detachment.
Listen
Each link opens a YouTube or Spotify search for this raga by the instrument or artist.
Vocal
Flute (Bansuri)
Sitar
Sarod
Same notes in Carnatic music
These ragas use exactly the same notes, though their phrasing and ornaments differ.
Why this time of day?
Chandrakauns is traditionally sung: Late night.
- Hindustani music follows the samay chakra, a 'clock of ragas'. Musicians noticed over centuries that certain combinations of notes match the feeling of certain hours, and teachers passed these timings on as a rule.
- Flat Ga and flat Ni create a deep, grave, introspective mood that suits the quiet hours of late night.
- Its most important note (M) sits in the lower half of the scale (purvanga). By tradition, ragas centred in the lower half are sung from noon to midnight.
- These are traditions, not physics. Today, recordings and concert schedules mean ragas are often heard at other times, but many musicians still honour the samay chakra.
Close ragas & how they differ
Ragas that sound most like Chandrakauns, and how to tell them apart.
MadhuranjaniTwo notes apart
- Chandrakauns uses Komal Dha, which Madhuranjani does not.
- Madhuranjani uses Pa, which Chandrakauns avoids.
- They belong to different times: Chandrakauns is sung in the late night, Madhuranjani in the afternoon.
- Mood: Chandrakauns leans shanta, Madhuranjani leans shringar.
KirwaniTwo notes apart
- Kirwani uses Shuddh Re and Pa, which Chandrakauns avoids.
- The most important note differs: Chandrakauns centres on M, Kirwani on P.
- They belong to different times: Chandrakauns is sung in the late night, Kirwani in the night.
- Mood: Chandrakauns leans shanta, Kirwani leans karuna.
Kaunsi KanadaClose cousin
- Chandrakauns uses Shuddh Ni, which Kaunsi Kanada does not.
- Kaunsi Kanada uses Shuddh Re and Komal Ni, which Chandrakauns avoids.
- Kaunsi Kanada uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- They belong to different times: Chandrakauns is sung in the late night, Kaunsi Kanada in the night.
- Mood: Chandrakauns leans shanta, Kaunsi Kanada leans gambhira.
Gopika BasantClose cousin
- Chandrakauns uses Shuddh Ni, which Gopika Basant does not.
- Gopika Basant uses Pa and Komal Ni, which Chandrakauns avoids.
- They belong to different times: Chandrakauns is sung in the late night, Gopika Basant in the spring.
- Mood: Chandrakauns leans shanta, Gopika Basant leans shringar.
Komal Re BhairavClose cousin
- Chandrakauns uses Komal Ga, which Komal Re Bhairav does not.
- Komal Re Bhairav uses Komal Re and Shuddh Ga, which Chandrakauns avoids.
- They belong to different times: Chandrakauns is sung in the late night, Komal Re Bhairav in the dawn.
- Mood: Chandrakauns leans shanta, Komal Re Bhairav leans bhakti.
Linked ragas & variants
Ragas from the same family or named after Chandrakauns, such as Yaman and Yaman Kalyan. They are related but each has its own rules.
Other ragas from Bhairavi
Film songs in this raga
Bollywood (Hindi)
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, …).