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Even till date the veena is played more by women and learnt by women students, though many may not take up performance as their profession. Goddess Saraswati is associated with the veena and the instrument is worshipped as a divine being. Lord Siva is also said to have played the Rudra Veena and is called Pinakapani, as he also plays on the veena pinaki. In yagnavalkya Siksha, sage yagnavalkya has written: “Veena Vadana Tatvagnaha Mokshamargam Niyachchati" meaning one who is proficient in veena -playing with the knowledge of melody and rhythm will obtain Moksha or liberation without much effort. References to the veena can be found in our Hindu epics Ramayana and Mahabharata and also in our puranas. Sculptures are found representing veenas of different types with or without frets in the Hindu temples. The veena with hundred strings was in existence before two thousand years. The veena was called Satatantri veena which is now used in Kashmir as a folk instrument as Santur and was made as an instrument to play classical music later. Pandit Shirkumar Sharma is an excellent performer of the Santoor and is internationally known to listeners. It was also called as Vana in Vedic times and later Katyayana veena Ravanastram is another type of ancient veena which was bowed and played. Kinnall was a plucked type of veena. The resonators for the different ancient veenas were of different shapes - such as pear, trapezoid and hemispherical. The resonators were made out of gourd. Historically speaking, Narada author of the Sanskrit musical treatise Sangeetha Makarnda written in 9th century A D mentions nineteen type of veenas which are as follows:
The modern veena with twenty four frets is known as Saraswati veena. The veena parivadini is said to possess strings made out of gold and was performed by Mahendravarman of the Pallava kings in South India. Mahati is the veena said to have been played on by Narada. Bharata is his Natyasastra mentions the two veenas - Dhruva and Chala from which he experimented and proved the existence of twenty two sruthies in an octave which are still in practice in the different ragas of Indian music. Palkuriki somanatha in his treatise Panditaradhya charita and in his Basava Purana (12th century A D ) mentions the names of different types of veena: 1.Brahma veena Haripaladeva in this work Sangita Sudhakara mentions the following six veenas: 1. Brahma veena which has only one string
The fingerboard of Kinnara consists of a round stick of black wood or bamboo and upon this Dandi or stick, 12 or 14 frets made out of metal was fixed. The neck or the tail piece looked like a kite. There were three gourd resonators below the dandi, the middle one looked bigger than the other two. There were three strings which were used for playing and one for drone effect. The veena Vipanchi is mentioned in the work Soundarya Lahari by Adi Sankaracarya. Vipanchi was performed by Saraswathi before Devi Parvati according to the verse written in the work Soundaryalahari. Pinaki veena is described as a bowed type of veena. In the musical treatises from Sarangadeva’s period (13th century) Ekaraga mela veena, Sarvaraga mela veena with frets began to evolve and the modern Saraswati veena is the product of the Sarvaraga mela veena with frets fixed in the finger board. This veena has the range of three and a half octave in modern times. This veena is called the Tanjore veena. The seven-stringed veena with four playing strings and three tala or rhythm strings emerged into prominence with Ramamatya who has discussed Sarwaraga mela veena in his work Swaramelakalanidhi (1550 A.D)
Among the musical forms of Carnatic music, “Tanam” is meant specially for playing on the veena. It is said that Lakshmi, Saraswathi and Parvati have played the veena and it is interesting to know that even today women play on the veena more than men. Can we call the veena a woman’s instrument? It is a noteworthy factor that this instrument was used to find out all the musical theories of Indian music such as the twenty-two srutis and different types of gamakas which are the unique characteristics of Indian music. (To be continued) Dr. S.A.K.Durga
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Veena is the ancient instrument of India, as from the time of the Vedas the veena was played as an accompaniment for vedic recitation. Veena is the generic term in Sanskrit to mean any instrument. The voice is called Sareera Veena and Gatra
Veena. During the vedic times, the veena was played by a pluctrum (vadana) during the sacrifices by the wives of the priests when they recited the Vedas. The veena was called
Audumbari, as the instrument was made out of Audumbara wood. There was also another veena called Pichola during the vedic times which was played by the wife of the yajamana or the performer of the sacrifice. 
Laghu and they possessed movable frets and the number of frets varied from (14) fourteen to (18) eighteen in number. It had four main strings and three secondary strings There were two types of veenas - Sari veena which are with frets and Nissari veena which are without frets. Among the veenas of the ancient period, Kinnari which is named after Kinnara was the widespread
veena. It is largely mentioned in Sanskrit literature, paintings and sculptures. 
Somanatha in his Raga Vibodha (1609) also refers to Akhila raga mela veena for Sarvaragamela veena with seven strings. Venkatamakhi in his work Chaturdandi Prakasika mentions Sarvaragamela veena and this modern veena is called Saraswati veena with seven strings and twenty four frets.
