Hindustani raga
The defining raga of Purvi thaat, using both madhyams.
Your guide to Purvi
New to classical music — moods, stories, film songs and simple listening.
Press play to hear the notes of Purvi, rising then falling.
Karuna. Traditionally heard at sunset.
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Think of a raga as more than a scale: a set of rules and a personality. Purvi 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.
Purvi sounds mostly bright, with a few shadowed notes that add a bittersweet tint. Its emotional colour is tenderness and sorrow, the feeling of a sad song that still comforts you. Traditionally it is traditionally performed in the sunset, because Indian musicians believe each raga matches the feeling of a certain hour or season.
The defining raga of Purvi thaat, using both madhyams. The beauty of Purvi 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.
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 musician dwelling on G. Once you catch it, you've started to recognise Purvi.
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). Purvi is classified under Purvi 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…
Arohana (ascent) · 7 notes
N r G M# P d N S'
Avarohana (descent) · 8 notes
S' N d P M# G M G r S
Synthesised with Sa = A3. A real performance uses gamakas, meends and phrasing that a bare scale can't capture.
| Swara | Interval from Sa | Western (Sa = C) |
|---|---|---|
| Sa | Unison | C |
| Komal Re | Minor 2nd | C# |
| Shuddh Ga | Major 3rd | E |
| Shuddh Ma | Perfect 4th | F |
| Tivra Ma | Augmented 4th | F# |
| Pa | Perfect 5th | G |
| Komal Dha | Minor 6th | G# |
| Shuddh Ni | Major 7th | B |
Jati (Sampurna–Sampurna). The ascent uses 7 distinct notes and the descent 8. 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. Purvi thaat: Komal Re, Dha and tivra Ma. Equivalent to Carnatic Kamavardhini.
Time (Sunset). Sung at twilight or evening (roughly 4–9 PM), when sandhi-prakash and Kalyan-family ragas are favoured.
Vadi and samvadi. G is the king note, the most emphasised and returned to. N is the minister, the second most important note.
Karuna
Compassion, pathos and sorrow.
Each link opens a YouTube or Spotify search for this raga by the instrument or artist.
These ragas use exactly the same notes, though their phrasing and ornaments differ.
Purvi is traditionally sung: Sunset.
Ragas that sound most like Purvi, and how to tell them apart.
No well-known Hindi film song is confidently attributed to this raga yet.
No regional film song is confidently attributed to this raga yet.
Film songs often take liberties with a raga, so treat these as "based on" rather than strict renditions.
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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, …).