Marking a Bhimpalasi Answer: Two Wrong Swaras, a Wrong Prahar, and a Candidate Who Sings It Correctly
Ajay's eight-mark answer on Raga Bhimpalasi is returned with 5/8. He has written: aroha 'n S g M P n S'; avaroha 'S' n D P M g R S'; vadi Ma, samvadi Sa; time 'morning, second prahar'. His bandish notation, set in Jhaptal (10 matras, 2+3+2+3), reads: sthayi 'g M P n | S' n S' | n D P | M g R S', antara 'P M G M P | d n S' n D | P M P g | R S'. The examiner's key follows the prescribed textbook lakshan: shuddha Re, Ma, Pa and Dha; komal Ga and komal Ni; Re and Dha omitted in aroha; late afternoon, third prahar. Ajay sings the raga correctly in class, argues that komal Dha 'sounds fine' in the antara, says the shuddha Ga was only a copying slip, and asks for the two marks back. His teacher has to decide whether the deduction stands, what to write on the script, and what drill will stop the same error in the practical file.
1. Audit Ajay's notation against the lakshan. Which swaras are wrong, which are right, and is the aroha-avaroha he wrote acceptable?
Read the worked answer
Take the elements one at a time.
- Aroha 'n S g M P n S' - correct for the prescribed lakshan: komal Ni, komal Ga, shuddha Ma, Pa, upper komal Ni, with Re and Dha omitted (audav in aroha).
- Avaroha 'S' n D P M g R S' - correct: komal Ni and komal Ga with shuddha Dha and shuddha Re, sampurna in avaroha, giving the standard audav-sampurna jati.
- Vadi Ma, samvadi Sa - correct.
- Sthayi 'g M P n | S' n S' | n D P | M g R S' - every swara is legally placed; the Dha here is shuddha D, which is right.
- Antara, 'P M G M P' - the capital G means shuddha Ga. Bhimpalasi uses komal Ga throughout, aroha and avaroha alike. This is an error.
- Antara, 'd n S' n D' - the lower-case d means komal Dha. Bhimpalasi uses shuddha Dha. This is a second error.
So the answer contains exactly two swara faults, both in the antara, plus a separate fault in the time statement. The aroha-avaroha, vadi-samvadi and sthayi are sound, which explains why the script still earned 5.
2. Is the 5/8 fair? Break the marks down and state the correction to write on the script.
Read the worked answer
Assume the standard split for an eight-mark lakshan-plus-notation question: 2 for aroha-avaroha, 1 for vadi-samvadi, 1 for time, 4 for notation.
- Aroha-avaroha: 2/2.
- Vadi-samvadi: 1/1.
- Time: 'morning, second prahar' is wrong. Bhimpalasi is assigned to the late afternoon, third prahar (roughly 3–6 p.m.). Award 0/1.
- Notation: two incorrect swaras at one mark each → 2/4.
- Total: 2 + 1 + 0 + 2 = 5/8. The deduction stands.
Script comment: 'Aroha, avaroha, vadi-samvadi and sthayi are correct. In the antara, P M g M P (komal Ga, not shuddha Ga) and D n S' (shuddha Dha, not komal Dha). Bhimpalasi is Kafi thaat: Ga and Ni komal, Re Ma Pa Dha shuddha. Time is late afternoon, third prahar.'
On the 'sounds fine' argument: in a notation question the issue is not taste but thaat identity. Kafi thaat contains shuddha Dha; writing komal Dha changes the swara set the examiner is testing, so the mark cannot be restored even though his singing is accurate.
3. What is the likely cause of the slip, and what drill should he do before the practical so it does not recur?
Read the worked answer
The pattern of errors is diagnostic: he is writing from the shape of the phrase rather than from the swara set. 'P M G M P' and a descending komal Dha are perfectly good phrases in other ragas; his hand reproduced a familiar contour and his ear, which knows the raga, was not consulted while writing.
Drill, in order of cost-effectiveness:
- Swara-set table first. Before notating any bandish he writes the permitted set for the raga (Bhimpalasi: S R g M P D n) and checks each written swara against it. Two minutes, catches both faults.
- Komal marks as a separate pass. After writing, he re-reads only the Ga, Dha and Ni in the notation and confirms the komal stroke is present or absent as required. Errors of this type are almost always in the komal/shuddha marking, not in the melodic shape.
- Aroha-avaroha written from memory, ten times, with the omissions marked (Re and Dha missing in aroha). This fixes the time and lakshan marks, which are the cheapest marks in the paper.
- Sing-then-write: sing the antara aloud and write each swara as it is sung, rather than copying the sthayi's rhythm.
Note the practical implication: because his oral rendition is correct, he risks assuming the written work is also correct. The teacher should mark one more written bandish under exam timing before signing the file.