World's first veena which can be played while standing.....
So far, in just over a decade, we have sold over 100 instruments - most of them to customers outside India. Its size and sturdy build make it perfect for international travel, especially flights-making it ideal for touring artists and music students.
What truly sets the Chandra V-na apart is our commitment to traditional tonal quality. We continue to follow classic veena-making techniques passed down through generations—using hand-selected, seasoned jackfruit wood, traditional wax melam, carefully crafted and adjusted bridges, and authentic fret layouts with accurate proportions.
Despite its modern, portable design, the soul of the veena remains untouched—allowing any experienced vainika to transition smoothly to the Chandra V-na.
After performing with it, I realized it was still quite heavy, and so we decided to reduce the kudam (resonator) size and reshape it. now days we are making that model (Chandra V-na - CVF 1x) with hollow body to make it light weight at the same time more quality in tone. I posted a video of this prototype on Facebook, and to my surprise, it attracted the attention of many renowned musicians. Their overwhelming response made me realize that veena players had long been waiting for such an innovation.
That same prototype is now being used by one of Kerala’s finest musicians, Manoj Ananthapuri. He later customized it by changing the color and adding artwork—originally, it had a simple wooden finish. We had used very old, seasoned jackfruit wood, and searched for two to three months to find the right quality.
We are proud to hold both a design and utility patent for this instrument—especially for the feature that allows it to be played while standing, like a guitar. We also registered the trademark for this unique creation as Chandra V-na. The name has a personal significance: “Chandra” is my father’s name, and the “V” stands for Vishnu, my own name.
Many people call it “Veetar”—a hybrid of Veena and Guitar.
2015, my father Ramachandran Achari and I sat together, brainstorming and sketching different designs to conceptualize a more portable veena. That very first prototype, which can be seen in the video where I play the Titanic theme, had the same fret size and hand-resting portion as a traditional veena. It had a solid flat body and weighed about the same as a bass guitar.
This model, known as Chandra V-na - Cvh 2x, was still electric, so a large kudam was not necessary. From the top, it looked like a veena, while the bottom had two detachable legs, enabling it to be played both sitting and standing.
We also introduced custom color options, and this model was highly appreciated. Every new design we made was influenced by customer feedback and requests. It was our customers who pushed us to innovate and evolve.
What followed was two intense weeks of design, sketching, and prototyping. Me and my father experimented with the fifth string configuration, testing different string gauges and adjusting the bridge placement for each string. One of the biggest challenges was achieving proper intonation. Unlike guitars, veenas have flat-topped bridges and straight frets, making precise tuning across multiple strings particularly difficult. To solve this, We carved individual grooves into the right bridge plate for each string. We must have changed the strings over a hundred times, constantly testing and refining the setup, all while ensuring the tonal integrity remained intact.
Meanwhile, Haritha also requested a gradient paint finish. We spent several weeks sourcing the right material before finally finding a dealer overseas who could supply the special chameleon paint.
It became a deeply enriching learning process for both my father and me. After nearly four months of dedicated work, the design finally came to life as the instrument you see today- Chandra V-na HKV 1.5x
Where We Stand Today
We are proud that renowned musicians such as Rajhesh Vaidhya, Phani Narayana, Punya Srinivas, and many others have become part of the Chandra V-na family. With every veena we build, we carefully incorporate user feedback to keep improving. Today, we proudly offer three main models of the Chandra V-na, All models include a built-in pickup and tuner, and we offer complete customization: Colors, Pickup types, Tuning pegs, Carvings and even name inscriptions.
Moving Toward Tradition
In 2018, after discussions with several traditional players, we heard one common request—they wanted the instrument to look more like a veena. That inspired us to create a new model with a hollowed body, visually resembling a half-cut Saraswathi veena.
The 8-String Revolution – 2023
The idea for this model originated during an order discussion with Haritha Raj, who requested a Chandra V-na—but in a smaller-sized veena. That conversation sparked the concept of limiting the instrument’s range to 1.5 octaves on a single string, compared to the standard 2-octave range of the original Chandra V-na. We decided to have the first string extend up to the tāra panchamam. Then came a breakthrough idea—why not add an extra string to cover the remaining octave range?
At first, I was uncertain. I told her honestly, “I’m not sure—let me try and see if it's possible
We recently launched our own line of external pickups under the Chandra brand. More innovations and upgrades are on the way. Our mission is simple- to make the veena more accessible, portable, customizable, and beautiful, while staying rooted in the rich tradition of Carnatic music.
Manoj Anandapuri
Rajhesh Vaidhya
Haritha raj
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