Accompaniments to Hindustani classic music

Accompaniments to Hindustani classic music:

Percussion:

The original drum accompaniment for Indian classical Music was the pakhawaj. It was mainly used for the Dhrupad style of singing. It's counterpart in the South is the Mridangam.
When we think of the Tabla, a set of two drums come to mind. Actually, the two drums have different names. The one which is usually played with the right hand and produces the sharper treble sound is called the `Table'. The other one, which produces the bass effect is called the `Dugga'. The black circle in the centre of
both drums is called the `shayee'. It is fixed on the skin by rubbing a mixture of carbon black powder and resin gums from rice, wheat etc.

String:

The Sarangi was the original Indian instrument used for accompaniment of Khayal. It is a stringed instrument played with the bow (like for the violin). But the main strings are played with the tops of the finger nails of the left hand ! It is the only instrument which when played properly, can closely imitate the tones of the human voice. It however takes a lot of rigorous training to master it.

Reed:

The Harmonium was introduced into Indian by the British and was soon adopted as an accompanying instrument in HCM. It has its drawbacks though. It cannot, which is a must for any accompanying instrument, produce some intricate variations sung by the artist like the 'meend' and 'taaan'. Purists preferred the sarangi to the harmonium. It is interesting to note that somewhere between the 1940's to the 60's it was banned from All India Radio. Only the sarangi was allowed in recordings.
Over the years, the sarangi has lost out to the Harmonium because the latter was easier to learn to play.