Nat Bihag | SRGmMPDnNS | Hindustani Raga Index

S-R-G-mM-P-D-nN-S

A Bihag offshoot developed by the Agra gharana, distinguished by the integration of special phrases such as mnDP; PDNS; PDNDP alongside other flourishes from Shuddha Nat (e.g. SR, RG, Gm, mP). Tivra Ma is either avoided or limited to occasional ornamental status (M/P), with komal ni similarly restricted to use as a madhya-saptak kan in runs such as n\DP. Refer to Rajan Parrikar’s listening recommendations, including Asad Ali Khan’s classic Agra rendition, Ramkrishnabuwa Vaze’s Gwalior rework, Biswajit Roy Chowdhury’s sarod interpretation, and Faiyyaz Hussain Khan’s nomtom alap (Khan’s various takes would later inspire “a famous cheez assigned to Lata Mangeshkar by composer S.D. Burman from the 1951 movie Buzdil” – Jhan Jhan Jhan Jhan Payala Baje – later picked up by others such as Mallikarjun Mansur). Also see other Bihag compounds including Hem Bihag, Chandni Bihag, and Manjari Bihag.

—Waseem Ahmed Khan (2021)—

[refrain, e.g. 3:02] G(mG) m/n(D) D(nP)P, P(mPmP), (DPDPmPmPDP)m m(Gm)G, (GR)G GR(GR)m, S(GmGmG)P (P)mG, GmR (N)S, (NSR)N S, G(Pm) m/n(D) D(nP) P…

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• Recent Raga Index Updates (Dec 2025): Added new ragas: e.g. Asa, Basant Bahar, Badhans Sarang, Bayati, Chandni Todi, Chandraprabha, Deepavali, Firozkhani Todi, Gaud, Japaniya, Kaushiki, Latangi, Maru, Palas, Sarangkauns, Shivanjali, Shrutivardhini • ‘Bifurcations‘: analysis via ‘poorvang + uttarang’ formulas • DoGa Kalyan & the Beatles’ Blue Jay Way • Amir Khan’s ‘168 merukhands’ • Uncovered Prabhateshwari‘s origins • Transcribed Manjiri Asanare-Kelkar’s ‘Amodini‘ lec-dems • Experiments (e.g overtonal Bhairav, jazz Malkauns) • Survey of Sa Tunings • More Masterlist ragas (1000+)

• 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: Chandni Kedar, Saraswati Kedar, Manj Khamaj, Pancham se Gara, Shuddha Chaya, Medhavi

–Swara Geometries–

• Core form: S–R–G–mM–P–D–nN–S

• Reverse: SrRgmMPdnS

• Negative: 5-2-5

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

–Global Translations–

S-R₂-G₃-M₁-M₂-P-D₂-N₂-N₃-S

1-2-3-4-#4-5-6-b7-7-8

• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):

0-2-4-5-6-7-9-10-11-0

(2–2–1–1–1–2–1–1–1)

o • o • o o o o • o o o o

• Names: Nat Bihag, Nut Behag

• Transliterations: Hindi (नट बिहाग); Bengali (নট বেহাগ)

—Amjad Ali Khan (2006)—

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George Howlett is a London-based musician, writer, and teacher (guitars, sitar, tabla, & santoor). Above all I seek to enthuse fellow sonic searchers, interconnecting fresh vibrations with the voices, cultures, and passions behind them. See Homepage for more, and hit me up for Lessons!