The dhantara (or dhanotu
) is a bowed string instrument found in
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...
state of India. The instrument is similar to the classical
sarangi
The sārangī is a bowed, short-necked string instrument played in traditional music from South Asia – Punjabi folk music, Rajasthani folk music, and Boro folk music (there known as the ''serja'') – in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. It is ...
, but is more primitive, having only three melody strings and no ''tarab'' (
sympathetic strings
Sympathetic strings or resonance strings are auxiliary strings found on many Indian musical instruments, as well as some Western Baroque instruments and a variety of folk instruments. They are typically not played directly by the performer (excep ...
). The instrument is popular among the
Gaddi people
The Gaddi is a semi-pastoral Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic tribe living mainly in the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
Overview
The origin of the Gaddi Tribe is Gaderiya (Dhangar) they also additionally believe that ...
of that state, and often decorated with flowers.
References
{{reflist
Music of Himachal Pradesh
String instruments
Indian musical instruments
Bowed instruments