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The bulbul tarang has not returned to mainstream use, but it has not disappeared: musicians still perform it, and makers continue to adapt its design. A wider revival is possible, not assured. Its prospects depend on whether players build new repertoire, audiences embrace experimentation, and concert stages make room for the instrument.
What is the bulbul tarang?
The bulbul tarang is a keyed board zither, not a conventional Western banjo. A player plucks its strings while pressing keys that shorten them to change pitch. It is also known in some contexts as shahi baaja and benjo or benju. The instrument type descends from Japan’s taishōgoto, developed during the Taishō era (1912–1926); the University of Würzburg’s collection records its export to South Asia and an Indian example from the mid-20th century.
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There is no single standard string count or layout. A museum instrument labeled Shahi Baja has five melody strings, five drone strings and a two-octave, typewriter-style keyboard. A Calcutta Musical Depot catalogue entry describes another configuration with 15 strings and 23 keys. These examples illustrate variation rather than a universal specification.
How did it become common, and why did it fade?
Ullas Ponnadi’s October 2023 Scroll feature describes the bulbul tarang as widely used in Indian film music, bhajans, ghazals, qawwalis and mehfils from the 1950s through the 1970s. Its keyed layout made it approachable to beginners; a small booklet even mapped popular film songs to numbered keys.
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Ponnadi links its decline to changes in music-making and recording. Keyboards, organs, synthesizers, loops, editing and precise studio recording reduced the need for some live instrumental parts. The feature says the instrument had largely vanished from music-store shelves by the 1990s and that live performances are now rare and geographically and stylistically limited. That is a reported account, not a quantified history of sales or demand.
How is it played, and what can it do?
The player strikes the melody strings with a plectrum while depressing keys, and may strum separate drone strings for support. Tuning is not factory-standard: specialist guide David Courtney says melody strings are tuned to suit a singer’s pitch, while drones may be set to the tonic (Sa) or fifth (Pa). He also advises against excessive string tension and notes that string gauges and materials can be changed.
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The keyed attack gives the instrument a distinct sound and makes it useful for accompanying a singer. But coordination can be demanding: the player must strike and move the keys together. Ponnadi identifies that simultaneous action as a primary challenge, particularly for expressive transitions. His feature also notes that the instrument cannot produce the smooth meend associated with the sitar, and reports one musician’s view that it cannot produce polyphonic melodies. These are performance constraints, not proof that the instrument has no room for artistic development.
Who is playing it now?
Ponnadi’s feature profiles Rajendra Naik, who has developed a repertoire that includes Hindustani classical ragas and other classical pieces. It also reports that Naik worked with a Mumbai maker on a custom instrument called the Pratham Tarang, and describes performances and workshops in Kerala. These examples show active musicianship and design work; they do not establish a broad resurgence.
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The sources reviewed do not provide reliable, named current figures for sales, audience size, market value or revival growth. The evidence is therefore best read as a picture of continuing but limited activity, rather than a measurable comeback.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What would it take for a revival?
There is no factual way to predict whether the bulbul tarang will “take flight again.” The case for cautious hope is that practitioners are still experimenting; the uncertainty is whether that work can attract sustained audiences and institutional support. Ponnadi’s account points to several conditions that could help:
- Committed players and makers: musicians need time to expand the repertoire, while makers can refine or customize instruments.
- Audiences open to experimentation: listeners must be willing to hear the instrument beyond its familiar accompaniment roles.
- Recognition from senior musicians and critics: respected advocates can help make experimentation credible to broader musical communities.
- Stages and support: concert programming, audiences and sponsors give performers a reason and opportunity to develop the instrument in public.
Different revival paths would emphasize different strengths: accompaniment or solo repertoire; traditional construction or custom instruments; accessible entry or more expressive technique; and local devotional or folk settings or wider concert programming. None is a proven formula. For now, the bulbul tarang’s future rests less on a guaranteed return to popularity than on whether musicians and the communities around them keep making space for it.
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