Mridanga Care Guide: Keep Your Drum in Good Condition

Good mridanga care keeps your drum sounding sweet for many years. A mridanga is made of natural materials, so it reacts to heat, damp and rough handling. These simple habits will protect your instrument.

Mridanga care basics

• Keep your mridanga in a cover or bag when you are not playing it.
• Store it away from direct sun, heaters and damp walls.
• Wipe the drum heads gently with a soft, dry cloth.
• Do not put water, oil or chemicals on the drum heads.
• Play with clean, dry hands.
• Rest the drum safely on a stand or on its side, so that it cannot roll or fall.

Protect your mridanga from heat and damp

Leather and clay react to the weather. Therefore, do not leave your mridanga in a hot car or in a very humid room. Heat and damp can change the sound, and they can damage the skin over time. In the rainy season, keep it in a dry cupboard or room.

Traveling with your mridanga

If you travel, pack your mridanga in a padded cover. Also, keep it away from the sides of the case, so that it does not take a knock. After a long or cold journey, let the drum rest at room temperature before you play it.

Tuning and repair

Do not force the tuning. If the pitch changes a lot, ask an experienced mridanga player to help you. Moreover, if the skin cracks, becomes loose or sounds dull, contact us through our customer support page, and we will advise you.

Choosing a mridanga for kirtan

Our Mayapur Mridanga is made in Mayapur Dham with Ahimsa cow leather, and every order includes a belt. For younger devotees, we also have a smaller fiber mridanga. Browse all our mridangas, or read our guide to the mridanga for kirtan. To learn about the instrument, see the Khol article on Wikipedia.

Hare Krishna! With a little care, your mridanga will serve your kirtan for years.