India
The sitar is popular in northern India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Typically measuring about 1.2 m (4 ft) in length, the sitar has a deep pear-shaped gourd body with, usually, five melody strings, one or two drone strings used to accentuate the rhythm or pulse, and as many as 13 sympathetic strings beneath the frets in the neck that are tuned to the notes of the raga (melodic framework of the performance).