{"id":2977,"date":"2026-05-25T12:55:36","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T07:25:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/?p=2977"},"modified":"2026-05-25T12:55:37","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T07:25:37","slug":"which-one-of-the-following-carnatic-music-ragas-is-similar-to-raga-bilawal-in-hindustani-music","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/upsc\/prelims\/which-one-of-the-following-carnatic-music-ragas-is-similar-to-raga-bilawal-in-hindustani-music","title":{"rendered":"Which one of the following Carnatic music ragas is similar to Raga Bilawal in Hindustani music?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list mcq\">\n<li>Nat Bhairavi<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Kamavardhini<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Hanumatodi<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Dheera Shankarabharanam<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Answer: (d) Dheera Shankarabharanam<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Option (d) is correct:<\/strong> <strong>Raga Bilawal<\/strong> is the basic &#8220;Shuddha Thaat&#8221; (all natural\/pure notes) scale in Hindustani music, matching the major scale in Western music. Its direct equivalent in the Carnatic system is <strong>Dheera Shankarabharanam<\/strong>, which serves as the foundational major scale for south Indian classical training.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Option (a) is incorrect:<\/strong> <strong>Nat Bhairavi<\/strong> is the equivalent of the Hindustani <strong>Asavari Thaat<\/strong> (Natural Minor scale, featuring komal ga, dha, and ni).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Option (b) is incorrect:<\/strong> <strong>Kamavardhini<\/strong> (also known as Pantuvarali) corresponds to the Hindustani <strong>Purvi Thaat<\/strong> (characterized by a komal re, komal dha, and t \u0924\u0940\u0935\u094d\u0930 Ma).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Option (c) is incorrect:<\/strong> <strong>Hanumatodi<\/strong> is the equivalent of the Hindustani <strong>Bhairavi Thaat<\/strong> (where all four notes\u2014re, ga, dha, ni\u2014are flat\/komal).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Concept of Scale Equivalence in Indian Classical Music<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Inter-System Axis:<\/strong> While Hindustani classical music operates on the <strong>Thaat system<\/strong> (10 fundamental scales introduced by Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande), Carnatic classical music uses the highly mathematical <strong>Melakarta system<\/strong> (72 parental scales formalized by Venkatamakhin).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The Shudha Svara Parity:<\/strong> Raga Bilawal is the <strong>fundamental Shudha Svara scale<\/strong> of Hindustani music, where all seven notes are natural (<em>Shuddha<\/em>). Its direct structural equivalent in Carnatic music is <strong>Dheera Shankarabharanam<\/strong>, which likewise employs entirely natural, major notes. This Western musical equivalent is the standard <strong>Major Scale (C Major)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Comparative Mapping of Major Hindustani Thaats and Carnatic Melakarta Ragas<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><td><strong>Hindustani Thaat \/ Raga<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Carnatic Melakarta Equivalent<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Structural Note Composition \/ Key Scale Feature<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Bilawal<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Dheera Shankarabharanam<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>All Shuddha Notes:<\/strong> The fundamental natural major scale of both systems.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Bhairavi<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Hanumatodi<\/strong><\/td><td>All four flat notes (Komal Re, Ga, Dha, Ni) + Shuddha Ma.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Asavari<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Natabhairavi<\/strong><\/td><td>Three flat notes (Komal Ga, Dha, Ni) + Shuddha Re, Ma. Corresponds to Western Natural Minor.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Kalyan<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Mecha Kalyani<\/strong><\/td><td>Sharp Madhyam (Teevra Ma) + all other notes Shuddha.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Kafi<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Kharaharapriya<\/strong><\/td><td>Flat Gandhar and Nishad (Komal Ga, Ni) + all others Shuddha.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Bhairav<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Mayamalavagowla<\/strong><\/td><td>Komal Re and Komal Dha + all others Shuddha. Standard beginner scale in Carnatic music.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Todi<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Shubhapantuvarali<\/strong><\/td><td>Komal Re, Ga, Dha + Teevra Ma. (Note: Carnatic <em>Hanumatodi<\/em> matches Hindustani <em>Bhairavi<\/em>).<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Purvi<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Kamavardhini<\/strong><\/td><td>Komal Re, Komal Dha, Teevra Ma, Shuddha Ga, Shuddha Ni.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Structural Breakdown of the Specific Raga Options<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">(a) Natabhairavi (Equivalent to Thaat Asavari)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Notes:<\/strong> Utilizes Shuddha Rishabha, Komal Gandhara, Shuddha Madhyama, Shuddha Panchama, Komal Dhaivata, and Komal Nishada.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Significance:<\/strong> It is the 20th Melakarta raga. It yields several popular derived ragas (<em>Janya ragas<\/em>) like Bhairavi (Carnatic version), Anandabhairavi, and Saramati.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">(b) Kamavardhini (Equivalent to Thaat Purvi \/ Raga Purbi)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Notes:<\/strong> It is the 51st Melakarta raga, traditionally also called <em>Pantuvarali<\/em> by the Dikshitar school.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Significance:<\/strong> Features a highly distinct structure with flat Rishabha, sharp Madhyama, and natural Nishada, producing a deeply meditative and solemn evening atmosphere.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">(c) Hanumatodi (Equivalent to Thaat Bhairavi)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Notes:<\/strong> It is the 8th Melakarta raga.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The Trap:<\/strong> Do not confuse Carnatic <em>Hanumatodi<\/em> with Hindustani <em>Raga Todi<\/em>. Hanumatodi uses the exact note intervals of the Hindustani <em>Bhairavi<\/em> scale (all flat notes except Sa and Pa). It is considered one of the major baseline ragas for complex improvisation in Carnatic music concerts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">(d) Dheera Shankarabharanam (Equivalent to Thaat Bilawal)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>The Notes:<\/strong> It is the 29th Melakarta raga.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Significance:<\/strong> As shown in historical notations, its ascent (<em>Arohana<\/em>) and descent (<em>Avarohana<\/em>) follow a straight, symmetric <strong>seven-note structure<\/strong>: <strong>S R<sub>2<\/sub> \u200bG<sub>3<\/sub>\u200b M<sub>1<\/sub> P D<sub>2<\/sub>\u200b N<sub>3<\/sub> S and back. <\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>S<\/strong> (Shadjam)<br><strong>R2<\/strong> (Chatusruti Rishabham)<br><strong>G3<\/strong> (Antara Gandharam)<br><strong>M1<\/strong> (Suddha Madhyamam)<br><strong>P<\/strong> (Panchamam)<br><strong>D2<\/strong> (Chatusruti Dhaivatam)<br><strong>N3<\/strong> (Kakali Nishadam)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It forms the melodic core for numerous monumental compositions by the Trinity of Carnatic Music (Tyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar, and Syama Sastri).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Answer: (d) Dheera Shankarabharanam The Concept of Scale Equivalence in Indian Classical Music Comparative Mapping of Major Hindustani Thaats and Carnatic Melakarta Ragas Hindustani Thaat \/ Raga Carnatic Melakarta Equivalent Structural Note Composition \/ Key Scale Feature Bilawal Dheera Shankarabharanam All Shuddha Notes: The fundamental natural major scale of both systems. Bhairavi Hanumatodi All four&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,1],"tags":[43],"years":[74],"class_list":["post-2977","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-prelims","category-upsc","tag-art-and-culture","years-74"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":3,"label":"Prelims"},{"value":1,"label":"UPSC"}],"post_tag":[{"value":43,"label":"Art and Culture"}],"years":[{"value":74,"label":"2026"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"LotusArise","author_link":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/author\/team-lotusarise"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":3,"name":"Prelims","slug":"prelims","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":1,"count":1251,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":3,"category_count":1251,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Prelims","category_nicename":"prelims","category_parent":1},{"term_id":1,"name":"UPSC","slug":"upsc","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":1269,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1,"category_count":1269,"category_description":"","cat_name":"UPSC","category_nicename":"upsc","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":43,"name":"Art and Culture","slug":"art-and-culture","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":43,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":80,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2977","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2977"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2977\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2977"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2977"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2977"},{"taxonomy":"years","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lotusarise.com\/qna\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/years?post=2977"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}