banjira Mumbai Style Nut and Bolt Dholak

Two-headed wooden dholak drum that is shaped like a barrel with a tenor and bass head. Drum is held horizontally and played on both sides. Heads are held in place and tuned by nuts and bolts. Nuts can be tuned with a standard wrench, included.

In India, these extremely popular percussion instruments are commonly used in folk music and during marriage ceremonies. The shells are manufactured in the Northern Indian State of Uttar Pradesh and made with locally grown neem and sheesham. After transporting to Mumbai, the goat skin heads are fitted to the drum shells with nuts and bolts for tuning.

Please Note: These drums are handmade and each one is unique so the drums and drum heads will vary in size.

Item Specifications:

Item Dimensions: 18" L x 10.5" H x 10.5" W

Playing Surface: Tenor: 6.5" and Bass: 9.25"

Body: Stained wooden shell with linear etching and 2 colorful bands wrapped around. Includes a hard plastic handle.

Heads: Drum heads are made from goatskin. The dholak's higher-pitched tenor head is a simple membrane with a metal ring stitched around the edge, while the bass head, usually played with the left hand, has a load inside that is a mixture of tar, clay and sand (dholak masala) which lowers the pitch and provides a well-defined tone. Includes a braid around the edge.

Tuning: 9 nuts and bolts

Accessories: Tuning wrench