The two main branches of Indian classical music – Hindustani and Carnatic – are similar in their fundamental approach to melodic and rhythmic organisation (raga and tala), yet they are distinct traditions, distinguishable on the basis of some concepts, styles and forms, poetry and song repertoires, intonation, ornamentation and instrumentation. Dr. Lakshmi Sreeram is an accomplished performer of Carnatic as well as Hindustani music. She has trained with many stalwarts including Vasantrao Kulkarni and Babanrao Haldankar for Hindustani music, and N. S. Chandrasekaran, T. K. Govinda Rao and V. V. Subramaniam for Carnatic music. With many vocal music performances to her credit, Sreeram is also a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. Having received a Ph.D. degree in philosophy, she is also an academician-writer who regularly contributes articles to leading periodicals in Chennai. In this lec-dem, she will explain the intricacies of both the systems, and highlight the similarities as well as differences underlying these traditions. Artist: Lakshmi Sreeram