Abstract

Nāṭakuṟañji, one of the rāga-s of Karṇāṭak Saṅgīta, has been mentioned in musical works and handled by composers since 17^th Century AD. With over 80 compositions in a period of four centuries, this rāga is used in various musical forms such as gīta, varṇa, padam, jāvaḷi, kṛti/kīrttana and tillānā. Further, it is often handled by performing artistes for the manōdharma element – “Rāgam Tānam Pallavi”.

However, as a result of the observations made through the various compositions, it is evident that the structure of nāṭakuṟañji as seen in the published notation, has changed and evolved over centuries. This is predominantly due to the difference in the usage of the pañcama. This research paper aims at analysing the evolution and the characteristics of the rāga, Nāṭakuṟañji based on the compositions of vāggēyakāra-s. The methodology adapted is primarily based on comparative and analytical lines by studying the melody, structure, rhythm and prosody of the compositions.

Keywords: Natakuranji, Raga, Gita, Varna, Kriti, Pada, Javali, Tillana, Vaggeyakara

Introduction:

Among the plethora of rāga-s that evolved during the pre-Trinity era, is the rāga, nāṭakuṟañji. For a better comprehension of this statement, it is imperative to trace the earliest found works, compositions and discussions, mentioning this rāga.

While the lakṣaṇa grantha-s, Rāga Lakṣaṇamu (1684 – 1711 AD) of Śahaji and Saṅgīta Sārāmṛta (1729 – 1735 AD) of Tulaja, categorise nāṭakuṟañji under the mēla, kāmbhōji, it is only since the early 18^th Century wherein the treatise, Saṅgraha Cūḍāmaṇi (1750 – 1800 AD) of Gōvinda, mentions it as a janya of the 28^th mēlakarta, Harikāmbhōji. The other grantha-s which give an overview of nāṭakuṟañji, are Saṅgīta Sāra Saṅgrahamu (1800s) of Tiruvēṅkaṭakavi, Mahābharata Cūḍāmaṇi and Rāgalakṣaṇa of the 18^th – 19^th Century, and Saṅgīta Sampradāya Pradarśinī (1904 AD) of Subbarāma Dīkṣita. There is no mention of nāṭakuṟañji in the works published before the 17^th Century.

The summaries of paṇ āraycci done at Tamil Isai Sangam, Chennai, state that the paṇ equivalent to Nāṭakuṟañji is maṉṟal. But, since none of the tēvāram-s are attributed to this paṇ, it is evident that the paṇ, maṉṟal was created much later.

On observing the contributions of vāggēyakāra-s in this rāga, one can infer that the earliest composition could be the aṭa tāla varṇa, inta aluka byŚrī Kūvanasāmayyā who belonged to the Pre-Trinity period.

As a result, it can be understood that the rāga, nāṭakuṟañji has evolved only from the 17^th Century and has gained the limelight after the contributions made by the Pre-Trinity vāggēyakāra-s.

Rāgalakṣaṇa of Nāṭakuṟañji:

In the present-day context, Nāṭakuṟañji is an upāṅga, rakti, sampūrṇa-auḍava, vakra rāga and the janya of Harikāmbhōji (28^th mēlakarta). Its notes occupy the following positions – catuśśruti ṛṣabha (R₂), antara gāndhāra (G₃), śuddha madhyama (M₁), pañcama (P), catuśśruti dhaivata (D₂) and kaiśiki niṣāda (N₂). The jīva or the rāga chāya svara-s are gāndhāra, madhyama, dhaivata and niṣāda. Madhyama and dhaivata also serve as the nyāsa svara-s. The notes, pañcama and ṛṣabha are judiciously used and hence could be coined under alpa svara-s. But it is the addition of this pañcama and ṛṣabha that contribute much in differentiating it from the allied rāga-s such as rāgēśri and khamās.  

Nāṭakuṟañji is a phrase-based rāga and does not bank wholly on the ārōhaṇa-avarōhaṇa scheme. Yet, it is important to analyse this pattern in order to understand the evolution of the rāga.

The above stated references imply that the inclusion of the pañcama in the ārō – avarō of the rāga, nāṭakuṟañji has been predominantly mentioned only since the 18^th Century but was used more commonly in the compositions of the earlier composers. The following section will elucidate upon the compositions in this rāga and the analysis based on them.

The Pre-Trinity Period (17^th – mid 18^th Century):

In the Pre-Trinity period, we can find one gīta, one varṇa, two kṛti-s and a prācīna padam. The gīta, rē rē bhū bharaṇa (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 2, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:778) is an exception in many ways. The tāla dhruva rūpaka, in itself adapts to a different rhythmic pattern – I₅ I₅ I₅ I₅ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ I₆ 0. The gītacommences with an introductory section with no name assigned, followed by a short antari and a very long jāvaḍa. This is the only composition (among the vāggēyakāra-s from the 17^th Century till now) in nāṭakuṟañji with no mandra sthāyi prayōga-s. This is also the only composition which hits ati tāra sthāyi ṣaḍja and hence appears to have been composed exclusively for the instrumentalists. Commencing a section of the composition from tāra sthāyi gāndhāra is yet another unique feature seen only in this composition. Some rare prayōga-s used in this gīta are: ngmndn – ġṁḋṁġṡ – ṁṅ,ṅs̈ṗḋṁġṡ – ġṁṗ̣ṙ,ṡnṡ – ṙġṁṙṡn. The composition is mostly in the upper octave. Here, one can notice that in the descent, a variety of phrases like mgs, srs, sgrs, mrs, pr,s and srgs are used, but the two commonly heard phrases – gmpgrs and snrs are not seen. The inclusion of pañcama in phrases like – ṁṅ,ṅs̈ṗḋṁġṡ – ġṁṗ̣ṙ,ṡnṡ – ṙġṁṗṁ,ṁ, also give a different flavour to the rāga.

The varṇa, inta aluka (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 4, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:1531)is categorised under tāna varṇa but it looks more like a daru varṇa as it comprises of sāhitya and jati portions for the muktāyi and ciṭṭ̣ai svara-s. Another reason to look at it as a daru is because, unlike a tāna varṇa which can be rendered in two degrees of speed, this varṇa sounds better if rendered in a medium kālaparamāna like a daru varṇa. The eḍu̱ppu̱ for aṭa tāla varṇa-s are usually after 8 beats from the samam. In this varṇa, we can observe that all sections of the pūrvāṅga start after 4 beats and the caraṇa commences after 8 beats from the samam. In today’s nāṭakuṟañji, we usually find the use of pañcama majorly in the phrases – ndnpdnṡ, (both octaves), pdndm and gmpgrs. But, an interesting observation made in this varṇa is the predominant use of pañcama. The phrases which includes pañcama are gmpm – pmgmg,s, – sṇḍp̣ḍṇs, – p̣ḍṇḍṇ, – pmnnd, dpd, – ndpṡṡnd, – nndnp,dn – ddnpdnṡ, (both octaves) – ḍṇp̣,ḍ,. In addition, we find rare prayōga-s like srrsṇs – gmpm pmgmg,s, – gr,p ṇḍṇ, – ndpṡṡnd, – ṇḍp̣ḍṇs, – mn,nd – m,,dmgg, – mg,pmnnd,. The phrases, smgm and gmpgrs which are commonly heard today are not found in this composition. In the avarōhaṇa krama prayōga-s, pañcama is always followed by madhyama. The range of this composition extends only till tāra sthāyi ṛṣabha with the phrase ṡnṡṙṙṡ,n.

The kṛti, nīdu mūrtini (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 2, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:783) of Pallavi Śrī Gōpālayyar is mentioned as ādi tāla – 2 kaḷā in SSP ( Saṅgīta Sampradāya Pradarśini of Subbarāma Dīkṣita). But, viduṣī-s Brinda, Muktha and T. Balasaraswati have sung it in 1 kaḷā and without the ciṭṭa svara. On the contrary, Vid. MD Ramanathan has sung it in 2 kaḷā but in the 2^nd degree of speed and with the ciṭṭa svara (similar to the notation). The phrases that are commonly heard in today’s rendition of nāṭakuṟañji are: smgm – ndnpdns, – gmpgrs, – srgm, – mgs, – snrsnd. Unlike the two compositions analysed earlier, which hardly included these prayōga-s, this kṛti has all these phases included. Interestingly, ndnpdns and snrs are found only in the upper octave. Likewise, the phrases that generally include pañcama, in today’s context, can also be seen in this composition – ndpdndm – m,nd mpmg – mndnp,dn – ṡdpm gmpgrs. The phrase ṡdp, although uncommon, has been registered in the minds of even music students currently, as it is used in the end of the last ciṭṭasvara of the famous pada varṇa, calamēla – a composition of Mūlaivīḍu Śrī Raṅgasvāmi Naṭṭuvaṇār. Some other rare phrases seen in this composition are ṡ,ġṁṙṡ and ṡ,ġ ġṙṡn. Both these phrases are approached in the Dhanammāḷ bāṇi using the gamaka, odu̱kkal. This is done by including ṛṣabha between the ṣaḍja and the gāndhāra, and following the gāndhāra with hṛsva kampita. This composition paves way to the different possibilities of ending phrases with tāra sthāyi ṣaḍja which include mndnṡ – ndnṡ – ṁġṡ – ṙṡnṡ – ndpdnṡ,ṡ – ṡ,ġ ġṙṡ – ṡṙṡ ṡ – ṡṙġṁṙṡ.

In the kīrtana, ninnu miñcina (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 4, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:1453), the primary observation made is that the melodic structure of the composition is very similar to that of Śrī Gopalakrishna Bharati’s vaẕi maṟaittirukku̱dē. All the three sections (pallavi, anupallavi and three caraṇa-s) of the kṛti commence from the madhya sthāyi sadja and the range of the composition extends from mandra pañcama to tāra sthāyi ṛṣabha. Hence, the murcchana of this composition could be towards the lower octave from the dhaivata of mandra sthāyi to madhya sthāyi pañcama.  Since the maximum extent towards the upper octave is till the ṛṣabha only, the phrases used around tāra sthāyi are ndnpd,nṡ – ṡnṙṡṡ- m,,d,nṡnd. As a result, phrases mgs and srgm are found only in the middle registers. Instead of the prayōga, gmpgrs, phrases like pgmrgs and srgmgrsṇ can be seen in the notation. ndnpdns is used in both the octaves. A unique trait in the second line of the pallavi is the melodic setting of the line, “nikihila lōka janani” which gives a pallavi like feel as it falls on an aru̱di followed by kārvai.

The Telugu composition, nātirō’s author is mentioned as a prācīna padam (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 2, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:784) of an unknown composer. The phrase mrgs is frequently seen in the notation. The other piḍi taken to reach the ṣaḍja is gmrs which is contrary to the commonly heard pgrs or mgs. Some other rare phrases include s,ḍ,p̣, – s,grs, – ġ,ṁṗġṁṙ,ṡ, – s,rgs, – ṡnṡ̅,̅,̅ġ̅ṁṙ,ġṡ. The popular prayōga ndnpdns can be seen in both the octaves. The composer has used srgm instead of smgm in all the sa to ma leads. Like in the previous composition taken for the study, this composition also comprises of certain unique handling of the svara, pañcama – s,ḍ,p̣, – ġ,ṁṗġṁṙ,ṡ, – ndnpdnṡ – sṇḍ,p̣, p̣p̣ḍṇ – mpm gmrgs – dnp,d, – g,mpm,g, – ṡndpdnṡ,. This padam composed on the Lord Lakṣmī Nārāyaṇa, comprises of a simple pallavi – anupallavi – caraṇa structure wherein the caraṇa ends with an eight āvarta long madhyama kāla sāhitya.

The Trinity Period (18^th Century):

            The contributions of the Trinity in popularising Nāṭakuṟañji and bringing it to the limelight is indeed notable. The only composition of Śrī Śyāmā Śāstri in nāṭakuṟañji is māyammā nannu brōvavammā (Vidya Shankar, Shyama Sastry’s Compositions, vol. 3, Gitalaya, 1979:58) which commences with a striking svarākṣara. ġ,ṁ,ṙ,ṡ, and ṡ,d,n,p,d, are the uncommon prayōga-s seen in the composition as per the notation given. It includes a two āvarta ciṭṭa svara-sāhitya wherein the different approaches to madhyama can be explored using different gamaka-s like hṛsva and svasthāna kampita, ēṟṟa and iṟakku̱ jāru, plain madhyama and nokku̱.

            Kuvalaya daḷa (Rangaramanuja Ayyangar, Krtimanimalai, vol. 2, Vipanchi Trust, 2008:234) of Śrī Tyāgarāja has a unique sāhitya structure with a pallavi followed by eight stanza-s of a similar tune. On the other hand, manasu viṣaya (Rangaramanuja Ayyangar, Krtimanimalai, vol. 2, Vipanchi Trust, 2008:237) has a regular structure (pallavi – anupallavi – caraṇa). As per the notations studied, the melodic structure of Tyāgarāja’s compositions comprises of only the commonly heard phrases and seems like the foundation for today’s nāṭakuṟañji.

            Among the Trinity, Śrī Muttusvāmi Dīkṣita’s compositions majorly differ by three factors. Firstly, there is an evident rhythmic exploration by Dīkṣitaas his compositions are set to tāla-s like rūpaka, miśra jhampa, miśra cāpu and ādi, unlike the other two, who have composed only in ādi with minor differences in the kālapramāṇa. Secondly, it is to be noted that Tyāgarāja and Śyāmā Śāstri’s compositions begin with madhya sthāyi madhyama and ṣaḍja. Whereas, Dīkṣita’s compositions have different eḍu̱ppu̱-s. For example, the pallavi and ciṭṭa svara of the kṛti – gajādīśādhanyam, begins with gāndhāra and the caraṇa commences with dhaivata. Thirdly, Dīkṣita has composed 5 kṛti-s while Tyāgarāja and Śyāmā Śāstri have composed 2 and 1 respectively.

In one of the vāra kṛti-s, budhamāśrayāmi (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 2, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:779), the niṣāda is treated with an iṟakku̱ jāru as per SSP (only composition of Dīkṣita in SSP) from the madhya ṣaḍja landing at mandra dhaivata which is another perspective of handling the svara apart from the regular kampita, nokku̱, orikkai and odu̱kkal. Another interesting phrase in the same composition is nġṙṡ which occurs for the words “madhura kavitāpradam” as svarākṣara. This sounds unique as it is different from the commonly heard phrases – nṙs or nṡṁġṡ or nṡṙṡ. The kṛti-s, pārvati kumāram, śivakāmipatim and gajādhīśādanyam (TK Govinda Rao, Compositions of Mudduswami Dikshitar, vol. 2, Ganamandir Publications, 2003:223) have a similar structure of pallavi, samaṣṭhi caraṇa and a short ciṭṭa svara passage.

According to the notation given by Vid. TK Govinda Rao, there is one āvarta of madhyama kāla sāhitya after the samaṣṭhi caraṇa followed by another āvarta of ciṭṭa svara in the composition, gajādhīśādanyam. But when we listen to Sangita Kalanidhi Vid. R. Vedavalli’s rendition, we understand that there is another version which is interspersed with jati and rendered as a single madhyama kāla svara-jati-sāhitya passage.

The Post-Trinity Period (late 18^th – 20^th Century):

            In the Post-Trinity period, we find a plethora of musical forms like gīta, varṇa, kṛti, kīrttana, jāvali and tillānā, which come to around 60 compositions in total. Given below are the analysis of select compositions categorised based on the musical forms.

Gīta:

S.No.	Name of the gīta	Tāla	Composer
1	madi tarum	miśra jhampa	Śrī Ponnayyā Piḷḷai
2	tāyu rōhini	miśra cāpu	Śrī Gōmati Śaṅkarayyar

There are two tamiẕ gīta-s available in the post-Trinity period – madi tarum in miśra jhampa by Śrī Ponnayyā Piḷḷai and tāyu rōhini in miśra cāpu by Śrī Gōmati Śaṅkarayyar (Isai Tamil Series, Annamalai University Publications, 1947:48). The note mentioned below the gīta-s clearly states that the ideal mūrcchana of nāṭakuṟañji is from the dhaivata of mandra sthāyi to the madhyama of madhya sthāyi. Further, the note also mentions that due to the inclusion of gmpgrs and ndnpdns in the descent and ascent, the ārōhaṇa and avarōhaṇa are prescribed with pañcama but the rāga’s essence could be brought out without the pañcama also. This is an extremely important note to denote the evolution of nāṭakuṟañji as the gīta of Śrī Muddu Venkatamakhi of the pre-Trinity period included maximum possibilities with pañcama and extended till ati tāra sthāyi while both these gīta-s are majorly devoid of pañcama but for these two phrases. This is the major change that nāṭakuṟañji has undergone through centuries.

Varṇa:

S.No.	Name of the varṇa	Tāla	Composer
1	calamēla jēsēvayya	ādi	Mūlai vīḍu̱ Śrī Raṅgasvāmi Naṭṭuvaṇār
2	inta parākēlarā	aṭa	Tiru̱voṟṟiyūr Śrī Tyāgayyar
3	māyamēlarā	khaṇḍa tripuṭa	Śrī Vīṇa Sēśannā
4	sāmi gānē	khaṇḍa aṭa	Tanjore Quartet
5	sāmi nī vēga	aṭa	Paṭnam Śrī Subramaṇya Ayyar
6	sārasa ninnē	ādi	Unknown
7	sārasākṣirō	miśra cāpu	Tanjore Ponnayyā
8	svāmi nāṉ undaṉ	ādi	Śrī Pāpanāsam Śivan
9	vagakāḍa	ādi	Kottavāsal Śrī Veṅkaṭarāmayyar

There are nine varṇa-s in the post-Trinity period set to different tāla-s including ādi, aṭa, khaṇḍa tripuṭa, khaṇḍa aṭa and miśra cāpu. Out of these, the pada varṇa-s svāmi nān undan aḍimai and calamēlarā jēsēvayyā are the popular ones. In the varṇa, sāmi nī vēga (TK Govinda Rao, Varnasagaram, vol. 7, Ganamandir Publications, 2006:178), there are phrases like ṇsrgm, rgrs wherein the consecutive svara-s do not necessarily have a link. Hence, either plain note for the commencing svara or a brief gap (odu̱kkal) is used. The varṇa, vagakāḍa (Audio Reference) of Kottavāsal Śrī Veṅkaṭarāmayyar is studied from the rendition of Vīṇa Kinhal in 1974. Here, the position of niṣāda played is very similar to how the niṣāda of rāga-s like bāgēśrī are handled without the heavy kampita. Oḍissi sangīta’s important gamaka – āndōlita resembles circling of the svara-s by starting and ending with the same svara while travelling to the upper note in the middle. A similar treatment can be seen in the ciṭṭasvara played by the artiste.

A unique set of phrases seen in the varṇa, inta parākēlarā (TK Govinda Rao, Varnasagaram, vol. 7, Ganamandir Publications, 2006:220) is the jhaṇṭa prayōga-s – ṇḍṇṇs ṇsggm – pdnndmm, – ṡ,nn ddnp – dmgg mmgs – ṇsrrsṇ. This is also the only composition in this rāga which extends till mandra sthāyi gāndhāra. In the uttarāṅga, we can observe that only the first ciṭṭasvara ends with srgm and all the other svara-s end with “sggm” which is an uncommonly heard phrase in nāṭakuṟañji. A similar trait is followed in the varṇa, māyamēlarā (TK Govinda Rao, Varnasagaram, vol. 7, Ganamandir Publications, 2006:221) of Śrī Vīṇa Sēśannā. The varṇa, sāmigānē (TK Govinda Rao, Varnasagaram, vol. 7, Ganamandir Publications, 2006:177) of the Tanjore Quartet has a eccentric prayōga in the caraṇa – mgpgmrmgs. Had the rmgs been in any other section of the composition, it would be rendered just once. But, since it is the aru̱di phrase in the caraṇa, it is repeated after each ciṭṭasvara and hence makes the rāga sound unique. This rmg can also be seen in Śrī Vīṇa Kuppayyar’s kṛti, māṭṭāḍa rādā. The muktāyi svara of the varṇa-s sarasa ninnē (TK Govinda Rao, Varnasagaram, vol. 7, Ganamandir Publications, 2006:85) and calamēlarā share a similar melodic structure at many junctures. For instance, the very commencement of the pallavi, m,g,s, ṇḍṇp̣ ḍ,ṇ, s and the beginning of the muktāyi svara – mmgs nḍṇs rrs. The repetition of the rare phrase, ṡnpdnṡ can be seen in the varṇa, sārasākṣīrō (TK Govinda Rao, Varnasagaram, vol. 7, Ganamandir Publications, 2006:222).

Kṛti:

S. No.	Name of the kṛti	Tāla	Composer
1	abhinava vidyātīrtha	rūpaka	Smt. D Paṭṭammāḷ
2	dāśaratīm	rūpaka	Śrī Taccūr Singāracāryulu
3	dharma samvardhani	ādi	Śrī Pāpanāsam Śivan
4	doravādari vaccitivā	ādi	Śrī Bālamuraḷi Kṛṣṇā
5	ekkālattilum maravēṉē	rūpaka	Śrī Rāmasvāmi Śivan
6	ēn inda tāmadam	ādi	Śrī Nīlakaṇṭha Śivan
7	enta ninē	ādi	Mysore Śrī Vāsudēvācār
8	eppaḍi eṉ agam	ādi	Smt. Ambujam Kṛṣṇā
9	eppōdu varuvāyō	ādi	Śrī Suddhānanda Bhārati
10	inda ōr udavi	ādi	Śrī Periyasāmi Tūran
11	iṉṉa vidamē	rūpaka	Ānai Ayyā brothers
12	jagadīśa sadā	ādi	Mahārāja Svāti Tirunāḷ
13	jaivādhṛka nibhavadana	ādi	Eṇṇappaḍam Śrī Vēṅkaṭarāma Bhāgavata
14	jaya jaya kailāśa	ādi	Śrī Nīlakaṇṭha Śivan
15	kandaṉ seyalaṉṟō	rūpaka	Lālguḍi Śrī Jayarāman
16	karuṇai purindu̱ raṭci	miśra cāpu	Maẕavai Śrī Cidambara Bhārati
17	kōlam kāṇa vārīr	ādi	Smt. Ambujam Kṛṣṇā
18	kuṉṟattūril niṉṟaruḷum	ādi (tisra)	Smt. D Paṭṭammāḷ
19	kuṟai ēdu̱ eṉakkiṉi	ādi	Smt. Ambujam Kṛṣṇā
20	madhusūdanam	tisra tripuṭa	Mysore Śrī Vāsudēvācār
21	māmava sadā varadē	rūpaka	Mahārāja Svāti Tirunāḷ
22	māṭāḍa rādā	rūpaka	Vīṇa Śrī Kuppayyar
23	nā cēyi viḍuvakura	rūpaka	Mysore Śrī Vāsudēvācār
24	nākabhaya varamosagi	rūpaka	Śrī GN Bālasubramaṇiyam
25	nāṉ eṉṉa	miśra cāpu	Śrī Lalitadāsa
26	ninnu miñcina	ādi	Śrī Śrīnivāsayyā
27	ninnu nammiti	ādi	Mysore Śrī Vāsudēvācār
28	niṟaikākkum kāppētalai	dēśādi	Māyūram Śrī Viśvanātha Śāstri
29	nityaklinnē niśkaḷaṅkē	ādi	Harikēśanallūr Śrī Muttayyā Bhāgavatar
30	oru̱ taram darisittāl	ādi	Śrī Periyasāmi Tūran
31	pāhi janani santanam	miśra cāpu	Mahārāja Svāti Tirunāḷ
32	parākēla sarasvati	rūpaka	Tirupati Śrī Nārāyaṇasvāmi
33	prasīda mē	ādi	Pudukōḍe Śrī Kṛṣṇamūrti
34	rāmā lōkābhirāmā	ādi	Eṇṇappaḍam Śrī Vēṅkaṭarāma Bhāgavata
35	śaṅkara bhagavatpāda	ādi	Eṇṇappaḍam Śrī Vēṅkaṭarāma Bhāgavata
36	siṅgādaṉattiru̱ndāṉ	khaṇḍa tripuṭa	Śrī Rāmasvāmi Ayyar
37	sondam vēruṇḍō	rūpaka	Smt. Ambujam Kṛṣṇā
38	śrī viśvanātham	miśra jhampa	Śrī Lalitadāsa
39	terijjikka vēṇum	ādi	Śrī Gōpālakṛṣṇa Bhārati
40	tripura sundari	rūpaka	Śrī Subbarāma Dīkṣita
41	vināyakā tuṇai	ādi	Śrī Nīlakaṇṭha Śivan
42	vyāghrapurīśa	ādi	Śrī Lalitadāsa

There are 42 Kṛti-s or Kīrtana-s available starting from the period of Mahārāja Svāti Tirunāḷ, to Śrī Taccūr Singāracāryulu, Harikēśanallūr Śrī Muttayyā Bhāgavatar, the Ānai Ayyā brothers and till contemporary vāggēyakāra-s like Smt. Ambujam Kṛṣṇā, Pudukōḍe Śrī Kṛṣṇamūrti, Lālguḍi Śrī Jayarāman, Smt. D Paṭṭammāḷ and Śrī Bālamuraḷi Kṛṣṇā. The rare dāṭṭu̱ prayōga pṡ is commonly seen in Mahārāja Svāti Tirunāḷ’s kṛti, vandē sadā padmanābham (TK Govinda Rao, Compositions of Maharaja Sri Swati Tirunal, Ganamandir Publications, 2002:251) resembling the rāga, navarasakannaḍā. The only composition in this rāga commencing with the note, madhya sthāyi ṛṣabha is his navarātri kṛti, pāhi janani (TK Govinda Rao, Compositions of Maharaja Sri Swati Tirunal, Ganamandir Publications, 2002:255). Śrī KV Narayanaswami renders this by starting with ambā from the tāra sthāyi ṣaḍja and then sings pāhi at tāra sthāyi ṛṣabha. In the contemporary approach, Dr. Balamuralikrishna in his kṛti, doravādari (M. Balamuralikrishna, Suryakanthi, Vipanchee Trust, 2013:77) gives rare phrases like – s,gs – pd,m – plain and sthāna kampita to niṣāda with a folk touch. The progression in the saṅgati-s covering an octave in the pallavi of a composition set to ādi (2 kaḷā) tāla, is a unique feature commonly seen in compositions like cakkani rāja- kharaharapriyā, koniyāḍina – kambhōji. This feature can be seen in the composition, ekkālattilum maṟavēṉē (Srinivasan MN, Maha Vaidyanatha Sivanum Ramasvami Sivanum Iyarriya Padalgal, 2001:79) of Śrī Rāmasvāmi Śivan.

While the themes of the compositions are mostly devotional based and on Hindu deities, there are also compositions written on the ruling emperor and an important composition by Māyūram Śrī Viśvanātha Śāstri – niṟaikākkum kāppē (Mayuram Viswanatha Sastri, Tirukkural Madura Kirttanai, vol. 1, Sangita Sadanam, 1958:58) which is on women empowerment and their value in the society. Likewise, there are compositions in saṃskṛtam, tamiẕ, kannaḍā, telugu and malayāḷam. But, a noteworthy composition is tripura sundari (Subbarama Diksita, Sangita Sampradaya Pradarsini, vol. 2, The Music Academy, Madras, 1905:781) of Śrī Subbarāma Dīkṣita which is in maṇipravāḷam (telugu and saṃskṛtam). It comprises of a long solkaṭṭu̱ svara-sāhitya passage.

Jāvali:

S.No.	Name of the jāvali	Tāla	Composer
1	calamēlarā nāpai	rūpaka	Śrī Kṛṣṇasvāmi Ayyā
2	ē kāmini	ādi	Bangalore Śrī Candrasēkhara Śāstri
3	tārumāru	ādi	Śrī Paṭṭābhirāmayyā

Calamēlarā nāpai, ē kāmini and tārumāru are the three jāvali-s in the post-Trinity period. As the theme of this musical form is mostly in a nāyaka-nāyikā bhāva, the kālapramāṇa also is faster. In the jāvali, calamēlarā, Śrī Kṛṣṇasvāmi Ayyā has set the entire caraṇa in madhyama kāla. The rhythmic pattern of the first four āvarta-s goes like – tām,, takiṭa takadhīnuta * 4 (3 3 2 2 2) followed by takiṭa tāmta * 3 takadhina (3 3 3 3 3 3 4). These patterns are apt as a composition for bharatanāṭyam. In the jāvali, tārumāru (Pappu Venugopala Rao, Bunch of Javalis, Pappus Academic & Cultural Trust, 2011:35), the anupallavi commences with tāra sthāyi madhyama which seems to be the only composition with this eḍu̱ppu̱. gmpdnṙṡ – a prayōga commonly seen in harikāmbhōji or khamās is seen in ē kāmini (Pappu Venugopala Rao, Bunch of Javalis, Pappus Academic & Cultural Trust, 2011:113) of Banglore Śrī Chandrasekara Sastri, in the anupallavi. While its pallavi begins after 6 beats from the samam like a dēśādi pattern, the anupallavi and caraṇa begin after 8 beats from the samam, similar to the madhyādi pattern.

Tillānā:

S.No.	Name of the tillānā	Tāla	Composer
1	dhīm dhīm tarana	ādi	Pūci Śrī Śrīnivāsa Ayyaṅgār
2	dhīm tanana	ādi	Śrī TM Tyāgarājan

There are only two tillānā-s in nāṭakuṟañji among the vāggēyakāra-s since the 17^th Century. One is by Pūci Śrī Śrīnivāsa Ayyaṅgār (D. Chellam Iyengar, Compositions of Ramanathapuram ‘Pucci’ Srinivasa Ayyangar. Higginbothams ltd., 1982:120) and the other one is by the contemporary composer, Śrī TM Tyāgarājan. Though both the tillānā-s are in ādi tāla, the former is in 2 kaḷā and the latter is in 1 kaḷā and hence the tempo difference in itself serves as a major distinguishing factor as it governs the gamaka-s involved in it. Śrī TM Tyāgarājan’s rhythmic style has made the tillānā more engaging. For example, the last saṅgati in the pallavi ends with a poru̱ttam like pattern – 4 3 4 3 4. In the caraṇa, he gives a glimpse of gōpuccha yati – ṡ,ṙṡ n,n, – ṙṡ n,n, – ṡn,n,. The caraṇa ends with the pattern – 3 3 5 – 3 3 5 – 3 3 5.

In addition to the compositions of the above mentioned composers, there are a few famous ones like vaẕi maṟaittiru̱kku̱dē by Śrī Gōpālakṛṣṇa Bhārati, pāl vaḍiyum mugam & vanamāli by Ūttu̱kāḍu̱ Śrī Veṅkaṭa Subbayyar, murugā murugā by Śrī Subraḥmaṇya Bhārati, muṉṉai paẕam – a tiru̱vempāvai by Māṇikkavāsagar, the nāma-s – alli nōḍalu rāma & prāṇa nāthā pālisu of Śrī Purandaradāsa, kōlam kāṇa vārīr & kuṟai ēdu̱ eṉakkiṉi by Smt. Ambujam Kṛṣṇā. But, these compositions are not included in this study since these verses were mostly tuned in a later period by performing artistes, and not by the composers themselves.

Conclusion:

As a summary of the observations made from studying the compositions of the vāggēyakāra-s of the three periods of time, one can understand the change in the entire colour of the rāga just because of one svara – pañcama. In today’s rendition, we find pañcama being used only in gmpgrs and ndnpdns and if any other phrase is used, it is coined as a rare prayōga. But, it is interesting to note that most of the pre-Trinity compositions have majorly used this note in the compositions and have exhausted all possible phrases using it. For instance, we find non-conventional phrases which gives chāya of another rāga – gmpm pmgmg,s, (nāgasvarāvali) – mg,pmnnd, (khamās) – pgmr,s, (kannaḍā). Some other dāṭṭu̱ phrases like gr,p ṇḍṇ, – ṁṅ,ṅs̈ṗḋṁġṡ – gmpr,s can also be seen in the compositions. Since these approaches are commonly seen in the Pre-Trinity compositions, we can infer that these phrases were quite in vogue in the older times (around 17^th – 18^th Century) and have evolved to what we hear today.

While some compositions are for performance’s sake, there are compositions which serve exclusively for practice purposes. Eg: Second ciṭṭa svara of the varṇa, inta aluka Here, one can understand that the first half of the first line comprises of just the ṣaḍja and the niṣāda. Only with attempts to decode the passage, one can infer how each niṣāda can be handled differently with gamaka variation. As a result, through this varṇa, Kūvanasāmayyā not just gives the outline of nāṭakuṟañji, but also indicates the abhyāsa methodologies like attempting the maximum number of possibilities within a restricted range.

One other important observation made through this process is that there is no composition from the 17^th Century in nāṭakuṟañji set to the tāla, khaṇḍa cāpu.There are verses which were tuned later and set to this tāla but no composition of vāggēyakāra-s. Given below is the list of compositions by the vāggēyakāra-s of the Trinity and Post-Trinity period.