S.R.I. Khol / Mridanga Karunya
VEGANFully snthetic drum heads and body and an ingenious tuning mechanism make the S.R.I. Khol Karunya robust, durable, easy to tune and vegan. It also offers excellent sound quality.
The small side of the S.R.I. Khol Karunya has a bell-like metallic sound and the big side a very deep bass. Due to the unbreakable synthetic body the S.R.I. Khol Karunya has a little less sustain than traditional clay khols though. On the other hand it is unbreakable and therefore very suitable for travelling. In traditional khols / mridanga the animal skin drum heads react very strongly to fluctuating temperature and humidity and must therefore be adjusted constantly. Moreover traditional drum heads wear out and therefore have to be replaced again and again with great effort. And vegans and vegetarians are bothered by the fact that animals are killed to produce the drum heads. All these problems are solved by Karunya's S.R.I. (Synthetic Indian Rhythm) Khol, which is made entirely of synthetic materials and has a stainless steel tuning mechanism. The synthetic skins are so water-repellent that you can even wipe them with a damp cloth for cleaning. The easy to use tuning mechanism allows a very precise and very durable tuning. If a drum head is damaged or worn out after many years of playing, it can be replaced quickly and easily.
VEGAN - without parts of animal bodies or substances produced by animals
Sound sample S.R.I. Khol Karkunya played by Atul Krsna
- fibreglass body
- 3-layer synthetic drum heads with firmly bonded elastomer coating
- water-repellent
- bass skin with inner coating
- stainless steel clamping devices with 10 (treble side) and 12 (bass side) holding points
- cover cover the clamping devices to protect the hands while playing
- removable and therefore easily replaceable drum heads
- including tuning key, bag, cloth cover & shoulder strap
The Khol can be played hanging around the neck in a standing position or sitting on the lap. A sophisticated finger technique allows complex rhythms. The instrument can also be played with the flat hands without any previous knowledge or skills.
Dr. K. Varadarangan, physicist, engineer and classical South Indian musician, has been developing the S.R.I. Karunya percussion instruments since 2010 in many years of research alongside his regular work as an expert for wireless communication systems. He wanted to avoid the killing of animals for the production of drumheads and the cutting down of trees for the manufacturing of drum shells. In addition, a standardised production was important to him to ensure a consistently high uniform quality, which is not achieved in traditional Indian instrument making from natural materials. When Dr. K. Varadarangan was ready for series production, he founded the company Karunya Musicals in Bengaluru for the production and distribution of his instruments. Karunya Musicals is a partner of India Instruments since 2019.
Treble e4 - G5
Bass F#2 – D#3
Head diameter treble: 3 ¼ / 8 cm
Head diameter bass: 7 ¼ / 19 cm
Body: length 59 cm, diameter 32 cm
Weight: 4.3 kg