The Dholak is a very popular drum with double skins from the northern Indian folk music. The difference in diameter of the high skin and the bass skin is relatively small. In order to still get a powerful bass tone, the bass skin is made heavier by a special paste. Contrary to many other Indian drums, the Dholak has simple smooth skins on both sides. This makes it playable not only by using the differentiating finger techniques common in India, but also by using the whole hand like many African and South American drums. Both skins are tautened by a cotton cord that runs through movable metal rings. The Dholak has been built since about 1300 AD and has been used in folklore, opera, kawoali, for simple songs and also in film music. For instance it is used in the Punjab Village that is well-known in India, in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in folksongs; in Bengal in the opera and in poetic songs.
The Dholak is a very popular drum with double skins from the northern Indian folk music. The difference in diameter of the high skin and the bass skin is relatively small. In order to still get a powerful bass tone, the bass skin is made heavier by a special paste. Contrary to many other Indian drums, the Dholak has simple smooth skins on both sides. This makes it playable not only by using the differentiating finger techniques common in India, but also by using the whole hand like many African and South American drums. Both skins are tautened by a cotton cord that runs through movable metal rings. The Dholak has been built since about 1300 AD and has been used in folklore, opera, kawoali, for simple songs and also in film music. For instance it is used in the Punjab Village that is well-known in India, in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in folksongs; in Bengal in the opera and in poetic songs.
Dholak is frequently used in Indian Cinema due its popular genre of music.It is also widely used in Baithak gana, tan singing(a local Indian music of the Caribbean), Qawwali, Marathi(laavani), Bhangra, Indian Light Classical Music, Film Songs, Folk Music, Geet, bhajans and kirtans. It is also Widely used in Indian Wedding Ceremonies in almost all states of India where young adults and children sing and dance to the beats of the dholak.
At weddings and religious occasions, women play the dholak to produce melodious sound and rhythm while singing. It is a common sight where a woman beats the dholak and other one strikes the barrel with a spoon to add to music. Sometimes tassels are also used for decorating the dholak.
Learning Dholak is easy & regular classes are also conducted for same. It is said that this instrument used to occupy a position of considerable prestige but today it is merely related to Indian film and folk music.