---
url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena'
title: 'Vichitra Veena'
author:
  name: rajeevk
  url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-de/user/4add8741a490747f'
date: '2026-06-20T23:46:33+00:00'
updated: '2026-11-06T00:33:56+00:00'
type: product
summary: 'The vichitra veena is a fretless slide instrument of Hindustani music, played with a glass ball on four main strings over two gourds, with sympathetic strings…'
tags:
  - Chordophones
  - 'Vichitra Veena'
image: 'https://files.kalasudha.com/styles/d12_standard/public/mcp-imported/vichitra-veena-366.jpg?VersionId=4_zf58621fa0f456059ae110919_f10847bcb3574f678_d20261105_m221203_c003_v0312045_t0036_u01793916723103&h=00546c34&itok=QXJUnE6Q'
published: true
og:
  site_name: KalaSudha
  'image:url': 'https://files.kalasudha.com/styles/d12_standard/public/mcp-imported/vichitra-veena-366.jpg?VersionId=4_zf58621fa0f456059ae110919_f10847bcb3574f678_d20261105_m221203_c003_v0312045_t0036_u01793916723103&h=00546c34&itok=QXJUnE6Q'
  'image:secure_url': 'https://files.kalasudha.com/styles/d12_standard/public/mcp-imported/vichitra-veena-366.jpg?VersionId=4_zf58621fa0f456059ae110919_f10847bcb3574f678_d20261105_m221203_c003_v0312045_t0036_u01793916723103&h=00546c34&itok=QXJUnE6Q'
  'image:type': image/jpeg
  'image:width': '1200'
  'image:height': '675'
  'image:alt': 'Vichitra veena: fretless beam on two gourd resonators with a glass slide'
---
 

Hindustani instrument · Fretless slide chordophone

# Vichitra Veenaविचित्र वीणा

The vichitra veena is a fretless slide instrument of Hindustani music: a broad horizontal beam, the dand, about 3 feet long and 6 inches wide. A large resonating gourd is fixed beneath each end.

 [Ask for a quote](/en-de/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=366) [Learn the vichitra veena  ](#learn) 

 

  

 

 

 

## Buy from KalaSudha

From £600

- Sold by quote or made to order
- Packed for shipping and delivered worldwide
- Serviced and repaired by us, wherever you bought it
 
 

  FamilyFretless slide chordophone



BeamTun or teak



Played withBatta slide, two mizrab



OriginNorth India, date unknown



  

  

Buy from us

## Choose your vichitra veena

 

 [Ask about a custom order  ](/en-de/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=366) 

- Student
    
    ### Student vichitra veena
    
    From £600
    
    Student vichitra veenas come from Indian workshops.
    
     [Ask for a quote](/en-de/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=366)
- Mid-range
    
    ### Mid-range vichitra veena
    
    £1,200 to £2,500
    
    Mid-range instruments have better gourds and jawari work.
    
     [Ask for a quote](/en-de/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=366)
- Concert
    
    ### Concert vichitra veena
    
    £3,000 or more
    
    Concert instruments are built to order, priced by wood and gourd size.
    
     [Ask for a quote](/en-de/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=366)
 


### What to look for

Intonation is the central skill on a vichitra veena, so start with the slide and the beam. The dand, of seasoned tun or teak, rests on two gourds that makers match in size and wall so the bass stays even. The batta, of polished glass, steel or smooth stone, must be clean and unscratched: a chipped or scratched slide buzzes and damages the windings. Glass sounds warmer, steel brighter.

Student vichitra veenas come from Indian workshops; mid-range instruments have better gourds and jawari work, and concert instruments are built to order, priced by wood and gourd size. Stringing varies, with 13 to 21 sympathetic strings and a jawari bridge filed by the maker. Ask us whether a listed length covers the beam or the whole instrument. Ask us for a quote, or for a vichitra veena made to order.



 

 

### After you buy

  Delivered worldwideWe pack every instrument for international shipping; ask us about cases and insurance.

 

  Service and repairWe service and repair any vichitra veena, wherever you bought it, worldwide: ask us.

 

 Strings, parts and casesAsk us for strings, spare parts and cases, and about a size for a younger learner.

 

 Help with your instrumentAsk us through the chat on any page, or by email, for help with your instrument. <contact@kalasudha.com>

 

 Gifts, schools and travelAsk us about gift vouchers, class sets for schools, and flight cases and travel help.

 

   Read the vichitra veena care guide    

- **Gourds:** Use a padded hard case with both gourds cushioned. Below 40% humidity, put an open water dish in the closed case; keep the gourds from heat, sun and sudden temperature change, or they can crack along the seam.
- **Slide:** Wipe the batta after use and keep it in a padded pouch. Replace a chipped or scratched slide, which buzzes and damages windings; hand polishing will not bring it back.
- **Jawari:** Never file the bridge yourself, since the smallest change alters the buzz; bring lost or harsh buzz to us, and wrap the bridge area for transport.
- **Strings:** Heavy main strings drift with temperature and humidity: let the instrument settle 10–15 minutes, then tune with a peg key before each session. Replace them as a set when kinked, corroded or dull, to keep the bridge balanced, and carry spare sympathetic strings, which break more often.
- **Joints:** Check gourd bindings and any beam-gourd gap yearly; movement or a gap costs bass and grows. Avoid extremes and hot cars, as wood and gourd move at different rates.



 

  

 

 

  

KalaSudha Academy

## Learn the vichitra veena with us

 

 [All courses  ](/en-de/courses) 

Start the vichitra veena with KalaSudha at Foundation level, online or in a workshop. Foundation sets the instrument flat in front of you and teaches the batta, the glass slide pressed on the strings by the left hand. We teach children as well as adults; ask us about a starting age and about a size for a younger learner.

Returning after a long break, you start again where you left off. Our courses run in levels, so your teacher reviews where you stand first.

 

 [Ask about learning the vichitra veena](/en-de/form/learner-enquiry?source_entity_type=node&source_entity_id=366) 

 

### Your route, stage by stage

1. 1
    
    Lap position, batta and mizrab
    
    KalaSudha's courses start beginners here, at Foundation. Sit with the vichitra veena flat in front of you, both gourds supported. Hold the batta in the left hand and press it on the main strings with even pressure at right angles, without bending the note sharp. Wear two mizrab on the right index and middle fingers and use the little finger for the chikari. Put a thin lubricant on the strings so the batta glides.
2. 2
    
    Intonation and fretless position memory
    
    Notes can sit up to two inches apart, and no fret marks them. Learn the string position of each note of a first raga, check each against a tanpura and repeat until the hand lands without correction. Fretless intonation is the central skill: accurate placement matters more than speed.
3. 3
    
    Meend and gamak
    
    Develop meend by sliding the batta from note to note in one motion, matching each glide to the raga's phrases, and gamak by oscillating it round a target pitch. Then build the fast ornaments the wide spacing makes exacting, khatka, murki and taan, keeping the mizrab stroke from disturbing the slide.
4. 4
    
    Alap structure and raga unfolding
    
    Study alap: begin in the lower octave with single notes and short phrases and expand upward over 20 to 40 minutes, letting the sympathetic strings speak between phrases. Then add jor and jhala; for jhala, practise Lalmani Misra's double-chikari pattern slowly before raising the speed.
5. 5
    
    Gat and tabla accompaniment
    
    Learn a gat with tabla in teental, rupak or jhaptal, and in the Misrabani favourites jhoomra and ada chautal, holding intonation under the cycle, and build speed through controlled repetition. Study Lalmani Misra's Raga Kausi Kanhada and Gopal Shankar Misra's Out of Stillness. Mastering Misra's style takes 12 to 15 years.
 
 

 

 

  

The instrument

## About the vichitra veena

 

 

### What makes a vichitra veena

### What is the vichitra veena?

The **vichitra veena** is the fretless slide instrument of Hindustani classical music, played flat before the seated player, and ours suits the dedicated student of raga. With no frets, the slide reaches any pitch in one continuous glide, so **meend**, gamak and microtonal inflection run across the whole range. One glide can span an octave or a quarter-tone with the same accuracy. Its tone is close to a humming human voice.

### What makes a great vichitra veena

A broad wooden beam, the **dand**, of tun or teak, rests on two large gourd resonators, the **tumba**, which add bass and sustain. Four main strings, chikari drones and 13 to 21 sympathetic strings run over a bone or deer-horn jawari bridge that sets the buzz. The left hand moves a polished glass or steel ball, the **batta** or kanta, along the main strings; the right strikes with two wire mizrab, as a [sitar](/en-de/instrument/sitar) player does. Notes can sit up to two inches apart, so intonation is the central skill, and chikari strokes between phrases hold the raga's ground while the sympathetic strings ring on in overtones.

### Tradition

A recital runs alap, jor and jhala, then a gat with tabla. Lalmani Misra, musicologist and performer at Banaras Hindu University, revived the instrument and built its repertoire and technique; students still learn from his 1960s and 1970s recordings, and his son Gopal Shankar Misra carried the line on.



 

 

### History

No one knows when the vichitra veena first appeared. Until the early 20th century it was called the **batta-been**, after its slide, and Lalmani Misra described it as the modern form of the ancient ekatantri veena. In popular belief Abdul Aziz Khan, associated with Lahore and Patiala, invented it; Gopal Shankar Misra says this former sarangi player popularised it, taking khayal and thumri onto an instrument of dhrupad.

By the 20th century it had almost disappeared. **Lalmani Misra** (1924–1979) revived it, and it peaked from the 1950s to the 1970s. He joined Banaras Hindu University in 1958 and became Dean of its Faculty of Music in 1967. He recorded for All India Radio and built the **Misrabani** style on right-hand mizrab bols, with new ragas such as Madhukali. His son and student **Gopal Shankar Misra** (1957–1999) recorded *Out of Stillness* at Real World Studios in 1999.

Gopal Krishan (1926–2004) of Bhiwani, a Hindustani player, received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1994. Students of these lines still play and teach it, though it remains rare. It lies flat before the player, the gourds resting on the legs. The Carnatic gottuvadyam, revived by Sakha Rama Rao, is a separate slide instrument.



 

 

  How a vichitra veena is made    

The vichitra veena rests on a broad, fretless beam, the **dand**, of seasoned tun or teak, 90–100 cm on concert instruments and 15–20 cm wide, narrower than a rudra veena since the beam passes vibration straight to the gourds. Two large dried gourds, the **tumba**, sit beneath it, one at each end, bound with lacquered thread; makers match them in size and wall so the bass stays even.

Stringing varies. Concert instruments carry four heavy steel or steel-wound main strings from a bone nut to the tailpiece, and two or three chikari drones set higher on the right. Their 13 to 21 sympathetic strings run in a lower plane over a second bridge or small pins. A bone or deer-horn **jawari** bridge, filed by the maker, sets the buzz.

The slide, the **batta** or kanta, is a polished glass, steel or smooth stone cylinder, 4–6 cm long and 2–3 cm across: glass sounds warmer, steel brighter. The mizrab is like a sitar's, sized for heavier strings. The player presses it lightly and evenly, at right angles to the string, since heavy pressure bends the note sharp, and keeps it clean and unscratched.



 

  

### At a glance

 Primary materialTun or teak beam (dand) with two large gourd resonators

String system4 main strings, 2–5 drone strings, 13–21 sympathetic strings; counts vary

Playing methodGlass or steel batta (kanta) slide in the left hand; two mizrab on the right

SpecialityContinuous meend across the full range; fretless intonation; tone likened to a humming voice

TraditionHindustani classical (Misrabani style and the Gopal Krishan line)

Key figureLalmani Misra

  

 

 

  Full specifications    

#### Physical dimensions

 Total instrument length90–100 cm

Soundboard width15–20 cm

Gourd diameter20–28 cm per gourd

Fret countNone (fretless slide instrument)

Weight2.5–4 kg

  

#### Body &amp; construction

 Soundboard materialTun (Indian mahogany) or teak

ResonatorsTwo large dried gourds (tumba), one at each end

Bridge typeBone or deer-horn jawari bridge

NutBone nut at headstock

FinishLacquered gourd joints; polished or stained wood; ivory inlay on some older instruments

  

#### String system

 Main playing strings4 (heavy-gauge steel or steel-wound); 6 in Lalmani Misra's arrangement

Drone strings (chikari)2–3 (up to 5 by some accounts)

Sympathetic strings (taraf)13–21

Standard tuning (Hindustani)Sa–Pa–Sa–Sa (tonic, fifth, tonic, tonic); Misra: Sa and Pa across three registers

BridgeJawari (bone or deer-horn) with sympathetic string channel

  

#### Playing equipment

 Slide nameBatta (kanta)

Slide materialPolished glass or steel, 4–6 cm long, or a smooth stone

Plectrum nameMizrab (two, sitar type)

Plectrum placementIndex and middle fingers of the right hand

Playing positionInstrument flat in front of the seated player, gourds supported

  

#### Acoustic characteristics

 Tonal characterWarm glide with jawari buzz and sympathetic shimmer, likened to a humming voice

SustainLong (gourd resonance and sympathetic string response)

Optimal useHindustani alap, jor and gat; slow to medium-tempo raga unfolding

Dynamic rangeSoft to moderate projection

ProjectionMedium (concert room without amplification)

  

 

  

  

Explore the music

## Hear the vichitra veena

 Hear KalaSudha's [recordings](/en-de/releases) and [concert videos](/en-de/videos). 

 

 

### Players

Ask us to book a vichitra veena player for a concert, event or recording.

 [Book a vichitra veena player  ](/en-de/book-indian-classical-musicians) 

 

 

  

Keep exploring

## More around the vichitra veena

 

 

- [ Discipline Vichitra Veena   Set each pitch with a glass slide, then shape the phrase with a wire plectrum. ](/en-de/instrumental/hindustani-classical/vichitra-veena)
 
 

  

Questions

## Vichitra Veena: common questions

Buying, learning, care and the instrument itself.

 

### What is a vichitra veena?  

The **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)** is a fretless slide instrument of Hindustani music: a broad horizontal beam, the dand, about 3 feet long and 6 inches wide. A large resonating gourd is fixed beneath each end. The player sets the pitch by moving a glass ball, the batta, along the main strings and strikes them with two mizrab plectra. It traditionally accompanied or followed dhrupad singing. Unlike the rudra veena, a fretted stick zither held at a slant with one gourd on the shoulder, the vichitra veena has no frets and lies flat in front of the player.



 

 

### How do I start learning the vichitra veena?  

Start the [vichitra veena](/en-de/instrumental/hindustani-classical/vichitra-veena) with KalaSudha at **Foundation** level, online or in a workshop. Foundation sets the instrument flat in front of you and teaches the batta, the glass slide pressed on the strings by the left hand. We teach children as well as adults; ask us about a starting age and about a size for a younger learner.

Returning after a long break, you start again where you left off. Our [courses](/en-de/courses) run in levels, so your teacher reviews where you stand first.



 

 

### Where can I buy a vichitra veena outside India?  

You can buy a vichitra veena from KalaSudha outside India, by quote or made to order, and we deliver it worldwide. We pack each instrument for international shipping; ask us about cases and insurance.

Any vichitra veena can come to us for service or repair, in any country, wherever you bought it. We also supply strings and spare parts. For help with your instrument after the sale, use the chat on any page or email <contact@kalasudha.com>. Ask us as well about gift vouchers and class sets for schools, or a flight case for travel.



 

 

### How big is a vichitra veena?  

The beam of a **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)**, the dand, is about 3 feet long and 6 inches wide, with a large gourd fixed beneath each end. Because the instrument is so large, note positions lie far apart on the string, up to about 2 inches between notes. Instruments described carry ivory inlay on the gourds and peacock-head carvings at the narrow ends.



 

 

### How many strings does a vichitra veena have?  

Accounts of the **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)**'s strings differ. The most-repeated description gives four main playing strings, five chikari drone strings played open with the little finger, and 13 sympathetic strings tuned to the notes of the raga. Gopal Shankar Misra describes his father Lalmani Misra's arrangement as six main strings tuned to Sa and Pa across registers, with three chikari on the left and one or two on the right. On the standard Hindustani arrangement, the four main strings are tuned Sa, Pa, Sa, Sa.



 

 

### How do you play the vichitra veena?  

On the **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)**, the left hand moves a glass ball called the batta along the main strings to set the pitch. The right hand wears two mizrab plectra, like those used for sitar, on the index and middle fingers, and the little finger plays the open chikari drone strings. Players put oil or butter on the strings to reduce friction under the slide; sources differ on which.



 

 

### Why is the vichitra veena difficult to play?  

The **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)** has no frets, so the slide must find each pitch on a bare beam. Because the instrument is large, note positions lie far apart, up to about 2 inches between notes. That wide spacing demands precise khatka, murki and taan.



 

 

### Who invented the vichitra veena?  

The exact date of the **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)**'s origin is unknown. Popular belief credits Abdul Aziz Khan with inventing it, but Gopal Shankar Misra rejects this and credits the former sarangi player with popularising it. Lalmani Misra described it as the modern form of the ancient ekatantri veena, and until the early 20th century it was known as the batta-been, after its slide.



 

 

### Who revived the vichitra veena?  

Lalmani Misra revived the **[vichitra veena](/en-de/instrument/vichitra-veena)** after it had almost disappeared in the 20th century, and developed a style for it. He joined Banaras Hindu University in 1958 and became Dean of its Faculty of Music in 1967. His Misrabani style builds on right-hand mizrab bols, and he created ragas including Madhukali, Shyam Bihag and Jog Todi.



 

 

### Can I book a vichitra veena player for a concert, event or recording?  

Ask KalaSudha to book a vichitra veena player for your concert, event or recording. In a recital, tabla joins the vichitra veena for the gat after the alap. Send your request through our page to [book Indian classical musicians](/en-de/book-indian-classical-musicians), and hear our artists in KalaSudha's [recordings](/en-de/releases) and [concert videos](/en-de/videos).



 

 

### Who are the best-known vichitra veena players?  

Well-known **vichitra veena** players include Lalmani Misra (1924 to 1979), who revived the instrument and built the Misrabani style on right-hand mizrab bols. His son and student Gopal Shankar Misra (1957 to 1999) recorded Out of Stillness at Real World Studios in 1999.

Gopal Krishan (1926 to 2004) of Bhiwani received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1994. Earlier, Abdul Aziz Khan, a former sarangi player, took khayal and thumri onto it.



 

 

### What is the difference between the vichitra veena and the rudra veena?  

The **vichitra veena** has no frets: a glass or steel slide stops its strings, and one glide can span an octave or a quarter-tone. The rudra veena has 21 to 24 high brass frets set in wax, and the player pushes the string sideways on them for meend of up to a fifth.

Both rest on two large gourds. The vichitra veena lies flat on a broad wooden beam, while the rudra veena's hollow tube sits diagonally, one gourd on the left shoulder. Both served dhrupad, and Abdul Aziz Khan also took khayal and thumri onto the vichitra veena.



 

 

 

 

### Still have questions?

Our support team can help you find the right answer.

 [Contact support](/en-de/form/learner-enquiry?source_entity_type=node&source_entity_id=366) 

 

 

Talk to us

## Tell us about the vichitra veena you want

Ask for a quote on an instrument made to order, or about learning to play it with our teachers.

 

 [Ask for a quote](/en-de/form/custom-instrument-quote?instrument_id=366) [Ask about learning](/en-de/form/learner-enquiry?source_entity_type=node&source_entity_id=366) 

 

 

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