S-R-G-m-P-D-N-S

---

Profiled by Parrikar as “a compound melody formed by joining elements of Chaya to the Malhar raganga signature [mRm\RP]…The nyas on Pa is important, but an inapposite nyas on Re or undue brightening of ma may tilt the development towards Nat Malhar”. Listen to his Gwalior guru Ramrang’s rendition, seasoned with a particularly prominent P\R antara meend – as well as Bhimsen Joshi‘s numerous takes, sometimes performed in conjunction with Chaya itself (bandish transcribed below). Aside from this pair of pioneering vocalists, nobody else seems to have formally recorded the raga – and neither can I ascertain much about its origins (although Savitri‘s writeup describes it as “a stamp of the Gwalior school”).

---

• Raga Megalist (365+) •

राग छाया मल्हार

Search | Glossary | Tags

• Hindustani Raga Index •

—Bhimsen Joshi (1960s)—

---

[bandish, e.g. 0:41] GRG R, GmG S, G\R, S SR, GmG(RS)R, N N\P, (P)NS, (NS)R, Gm(GR)G, RSR, S, S(NRS), R, Gm(GR)G…

---

• Classifiers •

Explore hidden inter-raga connections: swara geometries, melodic features, murchana sets, ragangas, & more (also see the Full Tag List):

---

Swaras: -4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10+

Sapta: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Poorvang: SRGM | SRG | SRM | SGM

Uttarang: PDNS | PDS | PNS | DNS

Varjit: Re | Ga | Ma | Pa | Dha | Ni

Double: rR | gG | mM | dD | nN

Thaat: 10 | 32 | Enclosed | Inexact

Chal: All-shuddha | All-komal | Ma-tivra

Gaps: Anh. | Hemi. | 3-row | 4-row | 5-row

Symmetries: Mirror | Rotation | Palindr.

---

Aroha: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Avroh: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Jati: Equal | Balanced | Av.+1 | Av.+2

Samay: Morning | Aftern. | Eve. | Night

Murchana: Bhup. | Bihag | Bilaw. | Charu.

Raganga: Bhairav | Malhar | Kan. | Todi

Construction: Jod | Mishra | Oddball

Origin: Ancient | Carnatic | Modern

Dominance: Poorvang | Uttarang

Prevalence: A-list | Prachalit | Aprach.

• Prakriti: Bilawal thaat, Bilawal, Tilak Kamod, Nat, Hem Bihag, Bihari, Savani, Swanandi, Gagan Vihang, Maluha, Mand, Hemant, Manjari Bihag

–Proximate Forms–

Khamaj = ‘Chaya Malhar komal ni‘

Patdeep = ‘Chaya Malhar komal ga‘

Yaman = ‘Chaya Malhar tivra Ma‘

Bihag = ‘Chaya Malhar double Ma‘

Nat Bhairav = ‘Chaya Malhar komal dha‘

Bhatiyari Bhairav = ‘Chaya Malhar komal re‘

(n.b. these are just ‘scalar similarities’, with nothing particular implied about phraseological overlap)

–Swara Geometries–

---

• Core form: S–R–G–m–P–D–N–S

• Reverse: SrgmPdnS (=Bhairavi)

• Negative: 3-2-3-2-2 (e.g. Malkauns)

• Imperfect: 1 (Ni)

• Detached: none

• Symmetries: mirror (R—d)

• Murchanas: Bilawal set

---

• Quirks: ‘maximal‘ (swaras are optimally ‘spread out’)

---

–Global Translations–

---

• Carnatic: ~Sankarabharanam

S-R₂-G₃-M₁-P-D₂-N₃-S

• Jazz: Major / Ionian

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8

• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):

0-2-4-5-7-9-11-0

(2–2–1–2–2–2–1)

---

o • o • o o • o • o • o o

---

• Tanpura: Sa–Pa

• Names: Chaya Malhar, Chhaya Malhar

• Transliterations: Hindi (छाया मल्हार); Bengali (ছায়া মল্লার)

—Bhimsen Joshi (1968)—