Thamate, Nagaari and Thaarsi: The Folk Percussion Instruments of Karnataka
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Thamate, Nagaari and Thaarsi: The Folk Percussion Instruments of Karnataka

Performing Arts
in Video
Published on: 01 June 2021

Shilpa Mudbi Kothakota

Shilpa is a filmmaker, theatre practitioner and singer. She has made films on agriculture, rural development and women's empowerment for the Karnataka State Department of Agriculture, the University of Agricultural Sciences, Samvada-Baduku and Karnataka Mahila Samkhya. In 2017, Shilpa along with her husband, Adithya Kothakota, founded Urban Folk Project.

Interview with one of the lead players of the Gunda Boys band about folk percussion instruments of Karnataka.

Thamate, nagaari and thaarsi are percussion instruments played together in folk performance traditions in Karnataka. They are made of leather and iron rings and produce qualitatively different yet complimentary sounds, making them a perfect combination for a band. In this video, one of the lead players of the band called Gunda Boys, Ningaraju, talks about how in recent years this hitherto caste-based occupation has attracted young men from across castes.