With reference to Dhrupad, one of the major traditions of India that has been kept alive for centuries, which of the following statements are correct? 1) Dhrupad originated and developed in the Rajput kingdoms during the Mughal period. 2) Dhrupad is primarily a devotional and spiritual music. 3) Dhrupad Alap uses Sanskrit syllables from Mantras. Select the correct answer using the codes given below :

The correct answer is B. Statements 2 and 3 are right, and statement 1 is wrong.

• Statement 1 is wrong. Dhrupad has its roots in temple worship and Hindu devotional traditions, not in Rajput courts during the Mughal period. Rajput patronage, notably Raja Man Singh Tomar of Gwalior in the late fifteenth century, shaped Dhrupad and gave it a court form, but patronage is not origin. The Mughal-period framing is the error.
• Statement 2 is right. Dhrupad compositions are devotional, praising deities such as Shiva, Vishnu, Krishna and Ram, and the form was closely tied to sacred music.
• Statement 3 is right. The opening alap of a Dhrupad performance uses syllables drawn from mantras, such as the Om, Ananta, Hari, Narayan pattern, before the rhythmic bols and pakhawaj enter.

Core concept: Dhrupad is the oldest surviving form of Hindustani classical vocal music, built on four sections (sthayi, antara, sanchari, abhog) and the slow, meditative alap. For Mains GS-1, it links to the composite culture of India, the Bhakti movement and the Dagar and Gundecha lineages that keep the tradition alive today.

Trap: Students pick option C because Rajput patronage sounds like the origin. Patronage and origin are different things; a tradition can be nurtured by courts without being born in them.