---
url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-gb/raga/kirwani'
title: 'Raag Kirwani: Thaat, Time & Notes | KalaSudha'
author:
  name: drupler
  url: 'https://kalasudha.com/en-gb/user/1'
date: '2026-01-24T12:33:12+00:00'
updated: '2026-10-29T15:14:02+00:00'
type: website
summary: 'Raag Kirwani: a Hindustani raga outside the ten thaats, performed late at night, with komal Ga and komal Dha and shuddha Re: the harmonic minor. Vadi Pa, samvadi Sa.'
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---
  [  Home ](/en-gb)     Kirwani  

1. [  Home ](/en-gb)
2. 
3. Kirwani
 
 

 

 

 

# Kirwani

 

 किरवानी

 

 

   Swara Notation  

 S R g M P d N S' | S' N d P M g R S

 

   Thaat: Kirwani    Late night   Sampoorna-Sampoorna  Carnatic origin 

 Night raga 

 

 

 Vadi: Pa (P) 

 Samvadi: Sa (S) 

 

 Raag Kirwani: a Hindustani raga outside the ten thaats, performed late at night, with komal Ga and komal Dha and shuddha Re: the harmonic minor. Vadi Pa, samvadi Sa. 

 

###   Quick Facts 

  Thaat (Scale) 

 Kirwani 

 

  Time of Day 

 Late night 

 

        Jati (Notes) 

 Sampoorna-sampoorna 

 

  Vadi (King Note) 

 Pa (P) 

 

  Samvadi (Queen Note) 

 Sa (S) 

 

  Mood/Rasa 

 Playful 

 

 



 

 

 



  ##  Origins & Context 

 

**Raag Kirwani** is a Hindustani raga outside the ten thaats, performed late at night, that uses **komal Ga and komal Dha** with shuddha Re, Ma, Pa and Ni. Komal means lowered and shuddha means natural, so Re stays natural in Kirwani. A thaat is a parent scale. It is also written Raag Kirvani or Keerwani.

In the notation here, lowercase marks a komal note, a dot the lower octave and an apostrophe the upper. The aroha, or ascent, is S R g M P d N S', and the avaroha, or descent, is S' N d P M g R S. The vadi, the most prominent note, is **Pa**, and the samvadi, its partner, is **Sa**. With Sa on C, its notes are C D E flat F G A flat B: the Western **harmonic minor**, as George Howlett notes.

Kirwani came into Hindustani music from Carnatic music. There **Kiravani**, the 21st melakarta, uses the same seven notes. Peerzada Salman reported in Dawn in 2014 that Slawek, a student of Ravi Shankar, credited his teacher with making the raga popular.

KalaSudha regards Kirwani as a raga of pure emotion, carried by its minor intervals more than by complex movement. KalaSudha releases Kirwani recordings, such as [a solo studio piece in Kirwani](/music/meditative-vibe-raag-kirwani-debasis-chakroborty). Its [academy](/academy) teaches ragas online and in local workshops.



 

  Show More  

 

   ##  Technical Details 

 

 Melodic structure and movement patterns

 

  

####  Aroha (Ascent) 

 

 S R g M P d N S'

 

  

####  Avroh (Descent) 

 

 S' N d P M g R S

 

  

####  Pakad (Catch Phrase) 

 

 P d S', S' N S' R' g' R' S' N d P, d P M P, P M g R, g M, g R S .N .d .N R S

 

  

####  Tanpura Tuning 

 

 P - S - S - .S

 

 

####  Additional Notes 

George Howlett gives night. The second prahar of the night, 9pm to midnight, is also given.

 

 

 

 

   ## Recordings & Performances

Listen to master musicians perform this raga

### Videos

 [ Video#### Raag Kirwani | Deepak Shah | Piano | Reading | Kala Festival 2025

Deepak Shah

 

 ](/en-gb/video/raag-kirwani-deepak-shah-piano-reading-kala-festival-2025) [ Video#### Raga Unison | Indian Slide Guitar & Guitar | Debasis Chakroborty & Giuliano Modarelli | Edinburgh

Giuliano Modarelli

 

 ](/en-gb/video/raga-unison-indian-slide-guitar-guitar-debasis-chakroborty-giuliano-modarelli-edinburgh) 

 

### Tracks

 [ Track#### Meditative Vibe - Raag Kirwani

Debasis Chakroborty

 

 ](/en-gb/music/meditative-vibe-raag-kirwani-debasis-chakroborty) 

 

### Albums

 [ Album#### The Pulse - A Meditational Journey

Debasis Chakroborty

 

 ](/en-gb/ep/the-pulse-a-meditational-journey-debasis-chakroborty) 

 

### Past events

 [ Concert#### Raga Unison at Edinburgh: Wind, Drums and Strings | Double Bill Concert

Ajay Prasanna

 

 ](/en-gb/event/raga-unison-at-edinburgh-wind-drums-and-strings-double-bill-concert) [ Concert#### Reading Raga Resonance: Slide Guitar, Piano & Tabla Solo Splendour

Akram Khan

 

 ](/en-gb/event/reading-raga-resonance-slide-guitar-piano-tabla-solo-splendour) 

 

 

 

  ##  Phraseologies 

Key for these phrases: lowercase letters are komal notes, a dot puts a note in the lower octave and an apostrophe in the upper.

The catch phrase opens in the upper octave, **P d S'**, then circles upper Sa through **S' N S' R' g' R' S'** before it falls to Pa. In the middle octave, **d P M P** and **P M g R** step down by turns. The close **g R S .N .d .N R S** dips to lower Dha and Ni before it settles.



 

####  Common Phrases 

g R S .N .d .N R S

 

 

 

 

 

       ##  Classifiers 

 

 Swara geometries, relationships, and classifications

 

###    Swara Geometries 

 Core Form:S R g M P d N: the Western harmonic minor.

 

 Reverse:Reversing the step order (2 1 2 2 1 3 1 semitones) gives S r G M P D n.

 

 Negative:Shadow scale: r, G, M#, D, n, the five notes Kirwani leaves out.

 

 Murchanas:Taking Ma as Sa gives the notes S R g M# P D n.

 

 Symmetries:None, in George Howlett's reading. S R g M rises by 2, 1 and 2 semitones, and P d N S' by 1, 3 and 1.

 

 

 

 

 

###  Structure 

 Aroha Jati [ Sampurna ](/en-gb/raga/kirwani) 

 Avroh Jati [ Sampurna ](/en-gb/raga/kirwani) 

 

 

 

 

   ##  Around the World 

 

 Global connections and equivalent scales

 

Berklee PULSE gives the C harmonic minor scale as C D Eb F G Ab B, note for note Kirwani with Sa on C. Between komal Dha and shuddha Ni the scale leaves a gap of three semitones.



 

  

  Western ###  Harmonic minor 

 C D Eb F G Ab B

Berklee PULSE gives C harmonic minor as C D Eb F G Ab B. With Sa on C, it matches Kirwani note for note.