Dharmavati

Dharmavati is a rāgam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is the 59th Melakarta rāgam in the 72 melakarta rāgam system of Carnatic music. It is called Dhaamavati in Muthuswami Dikshitar school of Carnatic music.Madhuvanti is the nearest Hindustani music scale to Dharmavati.

It is the 5th rāgam in the 10th chakra Disi. The mnemonic name is Disi-Ma. The mnemonic phrase is sa ri gi mi pa dhi nu. Its ārohaṇa-avarohaṇa structure (ascending and descending scale) is as follows (see swaras in Carnatic music for details on below notation and terms):

(the notes in this scale are chathusruthi rishabham, sadharana gandharam, prati madhyamam, chathusruthi dhaivatham, kakali nishadham)

As it is a melakarta rāgam, by definition it is a sampoorna rāgam (has all seven notes in ascending and descending scale). It is the prati madhyamam equivalent of Gourimanohari, which is the 23rd melakarta.

Dharmavati has a few janya rāgams (derived scales) associated with it, of which Madhuvanti, Ranjani and Vijayanagari are popular in concerts. See List of janya rāgams for all rāgams associated with Dharmavati.

Here are a few common compositions sung in concerts, set to Dharmavati.

Notable film composers like Ilaiyaraja and later A. R. Rahman have composed film songs based on the scale of Dharmavati. Ilaiyaraja composed songs such as 'Meendum Meedum Vaa' (Vikram), 'Andhela Ravamidhi', (Swarna Kamalam), 'Vaanaville' (Ramana), 'Nataraaja paadaalu' (Aalaapana) in this raaga while Rahman composed "Ottagathai Kattiko", in the 1993 Tamil film Gentleman, based on the Dharmavati scale.

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