AsavariSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- They belong to different times: Devgandhar is sung in the morning, Asavari in the late morning.
Hindustani raga
Devgandhar
Asavari with both Ga.
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- Thaat
- Asavari
- Jati
- Audava–Sampurna
- Notes
- 7 of 12
- Movement
- Krama (straight)
- Time
- Morning
- Rasa
- Karuna
Your guide to Devgandhar
New to classical music — moods, stories, film songs and simple listening.
Start listening
Press play to hear the notes of Devgandhar, rising then falling.
Its mood
Karuna. Traditionally heard at morning.
Film songs you may know ↓New to classical music?
Devgandhar, explained simply
Think of a raga as more than a scale: a set of rules and a personality. Devgandhar 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
Devgandhar sounds dark, deep and inward, full of the lowered (komal) notes that make music sound serious or sad. Its emotional colour is tenderness and sorrow, the feeling of a sad song that still comforts you. Traditionally it is traditionally performed in the morning, because Indian musicians believe each raga matches the feeling of a certain hour or season.
How to recognise it
- The melody goes up with 5 notes but comes down with 7, so the climb and the descent sound noticeably different.
- 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
Asavari with both Ga. The beauty of Devgandhar 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
- Jaunpuri, Sampoorna Malkauns, Asavari 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, Natabhairavi (Carnatic) and Nareretigowla (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 melody circling back to Sa. Once you catch it, you've started to recognise Devgandhar.
History & evolution
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). Devgandhar is classified under Asavari 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 R M P d S'
- Devanagari
- सा रे म प ध̱ सा•
- Bengali
- সা রে মা পা ধা̱ সা•
Avarohana (descent) · 7 notes
S' n d P M g R S
- Devanagari
- सा• नि̱ ध̱ प म ग̱ रे सा
- Bengali
- সা• নি̱ ধা̱ পা মা গা̱ রে 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 |
| Shuddh Re | Major 2nd | D |
| Komal Ga | Minor 3rd | D# |
| Shuddh Ma | Perfect 4th | F |
| Pa | Perfect 5th | G |
| Komal Dha | Minor 6th | G# |
| Komal Ni | Minor 7th | A# |
Character
Jati (Audava–Sampurna). The ascent uses 5 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. Asavari thaat: Komal Ga, Dha and Ni. Equivalent to the natural minor (Aeolian) and Carnatic Natabhairavi.
Time (Morning). Sung in the morning prahars (roughly 7 AM–noon). Morning ragas often stress the lower tetrachord (purvanga).
Karuna
Compassion, pathos and sorrow.
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.
Natabhairavi · CarnaticNareretigowla · CarnaticAmrithavahini · CarnaticBhuvanagandhari · CarnaticChapagantarva · CarnaticDevakriya · CarnaticDharmaprakashini · CarnaticDilipika Vasantha · CarnaticGopikavasantam · CarnaticIndughantarava · CarnaticJingala · CarnaticKamakhyapriya · CarnaticKanakavasantham · CarnaticNagagandhari · CarnaticNilaveni · CarnaticRajarajeshwari · CarnaticSaramati · CarnaticSindhu Dhanyasi · CarnaticShuddha Desi · CarnaticSukumari · CarnaticTarkshika · CarnaticVasantavarali · CarnaticManorama · CarnaticVajrakanti · CarnaticRajeshwari · CarnaticHindolavasantham · Carnatic
Ragas with the same notes
Same notes, but a different character because of emphasis, movement and phrasing.
Why this time of day?
Devgandhar is traditionally sung: Morning.
- 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 Re and flat Dha give a serious, prayerful sound that suits the stillness of early morning, when people traditionally meditate and pray.
- Flat Ga and flat Ni belong to ragas sung after sunrise, once the day has started. They give a deeper, more inward mood than the bright notes of the afternoon.
- 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 Devgandhar, and how to tell them apart.
JaunpuriSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Going up: Devgandhar climbs S R M P d S', while Jaunpuri climbs S R M P d n S'.
- They belong to different times: Devgandhar is sung in the morning, Jaunpuri in the late morning.
AdanaSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Going up: Devgandhar climbs S R M P d S', while Adana climbs S R M P d n S'.
- They belong to different times: Devgandhar is sung in the morning, Adana in the night.
- Mood: Devgandhar leans karuna, Adana leans veera.
Sampoorna MalkaunsSame notes
- Both use exactly the same notes, so the difference lies in how they move and which notes they dwell on.
- Going up: Devgandhar climbs S R M P d S', while Sampoorna Malkauns climbs S R g M P d n S'.
- Devgandhar uses a different number of notes going up than coming down; the other is more symmetrical.
- They belong to different times: Devgandhar is sung in the morning, Sampoorna Malkauns in the late night.
- Mood: Devgandhar leans karuna, Sampoorna Malkauns leans shanta.
GandhariOne note apart
- Gandhari uses Komal Re, which Devgandhar avoids.
Darbari KanadaOne note apart
- Darbari Kanada uses Shuddh Ni, which Devgandhar avoids.
- They belong to different times: Devgandhar is sung in the morning, Darbari Kanada in the late night.
Other ragas from Asavari
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, …).