Chakradhar Samaroh

Maharaja Chakradhar Singh of Raigarh was an unusual figure even among the princely states known for their cultural patronage. He was not merely a patron who provided financial support to musicians; he was himself a trained musician and scholar of music theory, who created a notation system for Hindustani music and wrote treatises on music and dance.

The Kathak tradition developed an important school under his patronage: the Raigarh Gharana of Kathak is one of the recognised traditions of the form, distinct from the Lucknow, Jaipur, and Banaras gharanas. Kartik Ram Maharaj, the founder of the Raigarh Gharana, developed his distinctive style under the Maharaja's patronage.

The Chakradhar Samaroh, established in the Maharaja's memory, is one of the primary mechanisms through which the Raigarh Gharana's legacy and the broader legacy of Raigarh's classical music patronage are kept alive. The festival continues to bring leading classical musicians and Kathak dancers to a small Chhattisgarh city that would not otherwise feature on the classical music circuit.

The Samaroh's cultural significance extends beyond the specific legacy of Chakradhar Singh to the broader question of what 20th-century princely patronage meant for Indian classical music: without the courts of rulers like Chakradhar Singh, the economic ecosystem that sustained classical musicians through the first half of the 20th century would have collapsed earlier and more completely.