Spotlight
Raga-s In Oblivion

On a very optimistic estimate, only
about 100 raga-s — a small fraction
of the thousands envisaged in the Carnatic music system—are popular today.
Several others are rendered, but only
infrequently. Hundreds remain on the
fringes. Some musicians have revealed a
fondness for rare raga-s, presumably
because they 'discovered' them, but most
musicians are lackadaisical and display
little interest in the explorative efforts
needed to find, practise and present
compositions in raga-s not often heard.