Basant

Basant Rāga (Hindi) – Also Known as Vasant

Rāga Basant, also called Vasant, is associated with the spring season, which spans roughly from February to April. It embodies the joyful spirit of spring—lush greenery, blooming flowers, and the lively sounds of birds chirping. V.N. Bhatkhande classifies this rāga under the Poorvi Thāt.

Traditionally performed throughout spring, Basant is also rendered during other seasons, specifically in the late-night to pre-noon time frame.

Musicologist Walter Kaufmann draws a comparison between Basant and rāga Sohni, noting that both often begin near the tār Sa, descend gently into the madhya saptak, and then ascend again towards the tār saptak. Both rāgas use Teevra Ma, but Basant also incorporates Śuddha Ma. A characteristic phrase of Basant is m Gm G, and according to Bhatkhande, another typical phrase is S NdNd in the uttarāng, which helps distinguish it from rāga Paraj, a closely related rāga.

Bhatkhande identifies three varieties of Basant:

Two well-known ones that both use Teevra and Śuddha Ma.

A lesser-known type that omits Pa and uses Śuddha Dha, with Śuddha Ma as the samvādi.

In contrast, the popular Poorvi Thāt variety uses Pa as samvādi, though this note is often omitted in the āroha to avoid resemblance to Paraj. All variants regard Tār Sa as the vādi note. A now nearly extinct version of Basant once included Komal Ga.

Bhatkhande’s Structure:

Āroha: S G m D ŕ Ś

Avaroha: ŕ N d P m G m G m d m G r S

Vādi/Samvādi: Tār S / Pa

Pakad: m d ŕ Ś - Ś ŕ N d P m G m G

Composition: "Phagava brija dekhanako chalori" in Teentāl, recorded on 78 rpm by Abdul Karim Khan.

Raja Nawab Ali suggests that omitting both Ni and Pa in the āroha strengthens Basant’s distinction from Paraj. He also notes that incorporating the Lalit-ang (S M m G) differentiates it further. His additional contributions:

Pakad: m d ŕ Ś - ŕ N d P m G m G

Chalan: P m m G m G m d Ś ŕ Ś N d P m G m G m d ŕ Ś N d P m G m N d ŕ Ś ŕ N d P m G m d Ś ŕ Ś Ś ŕ N d P m G m G r S

Vinayakrao Patwardhan cautions that since Basant is uttarānga-pradhān, elaboration in the lower octave (mandra saptak) risks resembling rāga Pooriyā. He allows the optional use of Śuddha Ma and, unlike Nawab Ali, does not prohibit Ni in the āroha.

Patwardhan’s Structure:

Āroha: S G m D N Ś

Avaroha: Ś N d P m G m G m G r S

Pakad: S N d P m G m G

Ālāp:

Sthāyi: S N r S G m G m d N d m P m G m G, m G r S m d N Ś d N Ś N d m P d m P m G m G N d P m d N ŕ Ś d N Ś ŕ Ś Í N Ś N d N Ś N d m P G G N d m P G m G m G r S

Antarā: S G m d N Ś N ŕ Ś d N ŕ G m G ŕ Ś Ś N ŕ Ś d N Ś N d P d m P m G m G G G N d P m G m G m G r S d m d Ś N ŕ Ś Ś G G m d m G m G ŕ Ś Ś Ś N d P m G m G m G r S

Composition: "Navala Raghunath nava navala Śrijānaki" in Jhaptāl, composed by V.D. Paluskar.

Master Krishnarao avoids only Pa in the āroha, allowing Re and Ni. His formulation is:

Āroha: N r G m d N Ś

Avaroha: Ś N d P m G m G r S

Vādi/Samvādi: S / m

Pakad: Ś N d P m m G m G r S N S M G m d N ŕ Ś

Chalan: N Ś N d P m G m G G m N d m G m G r S S M M G N d P m G m d N Ś ŕ Ś N d P G ŕ Ś ŕ Ś N d N d P Ś G í m G ŕ Ś N d m d Ś N d m G m G r S

Govindrao Tembe highlights a distinctive feature of Basant’s chalan: during the avaroha, when the ālāp reaches madhya Sa, it swiftly ascends to Śuddha Ma. After a short pause, it glides (meend) to Śuddha Ni before reaching Tār Sa through N D m D N Ś.

Pakad: m D ŕ Ś

Svara-Sangatis: ŕ Ś N d P P P m G m G r S S M N d P m G m d N ŕ Ś

Composition: "Lochanāmbudharani hé payodhara olé", used in the Marathi play Mrichchhakatik, based on the Hindi original "Yeri māi yeri māi".

Manik-bua Thakurdas supports omitting both Ni and Pa in the āroha but does not consider it mandatory. He offers two alternative āroha patterns:

Āroha 1: S r S G m d Ś

Āroha 2: S r S G m d N Ś

Avaroha: S N d P m G P G m G r S

Vādi/Samvādi: P / S

Pakad: S r S G m G r S m P d m G m G m G r S

Chalan: S r S G m G r S m d P m G m G m d N d P m G m G m G r S S M m M G N d P m G m G m d N d Ś ŕ Ś G ŕ Ś ŕ Ś N d Ś N d m G m G m G r S