'I hope they are making khartals'

Anoparam Sutar has never played a musical instrument, but he knows exactly which wood produces the finest notes. “Give me a piece of wood, and I can tell you if it will make a good musical instrument,” says the eighth generation khartal maker.

A percussion instrument used in Rajasthan's folk and devotional music, the khartal is made up of four pieces, and each hand holds two – one piece is held with the thumb, and the other with the remaining four fingers. When clapped together, they produce a clinking sound. Only two syllables are used in the instrument – ta and ka. “Kalakar banvate he [The musicians get khartals made],” the 57-year-old says.

Rajasthani khartals usually don’t have bells embedded in them unlike the ones with cymbals called manjeera or karatalas.

The master craftsman can make a four-piece set in just two hours. “Earlier, it took me an entire day [eight hours],” he says, recalling his early years in the craft.  Anoparam’s family of sutars have been making khartals for almost two centuries: “Bachpan se yehi kaam hai hamara [Since childhood, this has been our job].”

He says his father, the late Uslaram, was a kind teacher, and one who patiently taught him. “I made a lot of mistakes, lekin wo kabhi nahi chillate the, pyaar se samajhte the [he never yelled and always taught with love].” Making khartals is only done by men of this sutar community.

A migrant from Barmer district’s Harsani village, Anoparam came to Jaisalmer in 1981 in search of work as, “in the village, we didn’t get enough carpentry work.” The master woodworker also knows how to make other instruments – harmonium, kamaicha, sarangi, and veena but, “I rarely get orders for them,” he says. It takes him over a week to handmake kamaicha and sarangi, which he sells for Rs. 8,000 and Rs. 4,000, respectively.

Apart from making musical instruments, he has also mastered making doors with intricately carved flowers, a hallmark design in Jaisalmer’s architecture. He also makes chairs and wooden furniture items like wardrobes and dressing units.

Khartals in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer and Jodhpur districts are made with sheesham (Dalbergia sissoo) or safeda (Eucalyptus) wood. Selecting the right kind of wood is the first and most important step for making khartals. “Dekh ke lena padta he [You have to see carefully and then buy the wood],” he says. “The younger generation doesn’t even know how to identify the right wood for making an instrument like khartal.”

Anoparam buys the wood from Jaisalmer and makes khartals with sheesham and safeda wood, but says that it has become increasingly difficult to find the right kind of wood now.

To make a set of four khartals, he uses a 2.5-foot-long piece of wood that costs him around Rs. 150. He then marks out its dimensions: 7.25 inches long, 2.25 inches wide, and 6 millimetres deep, and cuts it using a saw. 

“Burada udta he aur naak, aankh me chala jaata he [The sawdust often goes into the eyes and ears],” he says, and makes him cough a lot. Wearing a mask doesn’t help, as wearing one for over eight hours a day is suffocating. “In Jaisalmer’s heat, it gets much worse,” he says, referring to temperatures in the city that reach above 45 degrees Celsius in summer.

After sawing the wood, he switches to using a randa (hand plane) to smoothen the surface. “This needs to be done carefully. Even if you make a minute error, you have to start working with another [piece of] wood,” he says. The khartals strike repeatedly to produce the musical notes, and any inconsistency with the surface can change its tone and sound. 

Many times, the saw injures his fingers, and the hammering also causes him pain, but he dismisses it saying they are a common part of his job, and his father, Uslaram too often injured himself.

It takes him about an hour to smoothen the wooden surface, and then he moves on to rounding the four corners by using a coping saw. After carefully inspecting the rounded corners, Anoparam sands the edges until they become smooth as glass. 

After buying the khartals, the musicians use sandpaper to improve tonality. The application of mustard oil gives the instrument a chestnut brown colour.

He sells a set of four safeda khartals for Rs. 350 and the sheesham ones for Rs. 450 as “sheesham khartals are known for their better-sounding music and notes,” he says.

Anoparam gets an order for 5-10 pairs of khartals every month. When he started out, the number was between two and four. While the demand for the instrument has increased due to the many foreign tourists visiting Rajasthan, the people making it have reduced. Two decades ago, there were over 15 carpenters who used to make the instrument, but Anoparam is one of the few remaining khartal makers in Jaisalmer. Younger carpenters are now moving to cities to craft furniture, as it pays well.

Some craftspersons who sell the khartals to tourists, also hold online sessions with foreign tourists, navigating the different languages.

“This art is quite old, but the younger generation doesn’t want to learn how to make a khartal,” he adds. In the past 30 years, Anoparam says he has taught roughly seven people to make these instruments: “wherever they are, I hope they are making khartals.” 

His sons, Prakash, 28, and Kailash, 24, never learnt to make khartals; they work as carpenters in different states, building furniture at homes and offices. His daughter, Santosh, is in her mid-20s, married and a homemaker. When asked if his sons will ever pick the craft, he says, “koi bharosa nahi he [there’s no assurance].

A customer, overhearing our conversation, asks him, “aap kyu bade shehar nahi gaye jyada paise kamane [why didn’t you migrate to bigger cities to earn more money].” Anoparam replies, “ham isme khush he [I am happy with this].”

This story is part of a series on rural artisans by Sanket Jain, and is supported by the Mrinalini Mukherjee Foundation.