Times of Rajasthan · Rajasthan Darshan

Kesariya Balam — the songs of the Manganiyars

Maand singing from the Thar, the hum of the kamaicha and the clack of the khartal.

Rajasthan Darshan · 1/5

A song rising from the sea of sand

When the Manganiyars begin on a Thar evening, the silence of the desert turns into song.

No Known / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

Rajasthan Darshan · 2/5

The hum of the kamaicha

Carved from mango wood, the kamaicha gives a deep, ringing tone as the bow moves across it.

Ji-Elle / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Rajasthan Darshan · 3/5

The beat of the khartal

Wooden clappers in the palms — nimble fingers make them gallop like hooves.

Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

Rajasthan Darshan · 4/5

In the shade of the golden fort

Jaisalmer’s golden fort, whose lanes and havelis have held this music for centuries.

Clément Bardot / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Rajasthan Darshan · 5/5

Padharo Mhare Des

"Come to my land" — this song of welcome has become Rajasthan’s own greeting to the world.

Rudolph.A.furtado / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)