Comparison

beSur vs Karunattu

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

beSur

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beSur: Indian Classical Riyaz App Practice Hindustani classical music with clarity and confidence. beSur is an AI-powered harmonium accompaniment app designed for vocal riyaz. It helps you practice swar, alankars, and bandish with guided audio, visual note cues, and flexible practice controls. Whether you are revising after class or building a daily riyaz habit, beSur makes practice structured, engaging, and effective. Designed for Hindustani Classical Learners Perfect for students practicing: - Swar exercises - Alankars (patterns) - Raga phrases - Bandish - Daily vocal riyaz Ideal for beginner and intermediate learners who want consistent practice outside class. AI Harmonium Accompaniment Practice with harmonium-style accompaniment that helps you stay in sur, follow the melody, and improve swar accuracy. Learn with Guided Vocal Tracks Practice along with clear vocal demonstrations to understand correct swar placement and phrasing, and reinforce your Guru's teachings. Visual Swar Guidance Follow swars visually as you practice to understand note movement, stay aligned with pitch, and improve learning speed. Loop and Practice Controls Use loop and repeat features to focus on difficult phrases and build muscle memory. Tanpura and Sa Support Maintain a strong tonal foundation with tanpura drone and Sa reference to improve pitch stability and listening skills. Build a Daily Riyaz Habit Consistent riyaz is essential in Indian classical music. beSur helps you practice anytime with a structured and repeatable approach. Designed to Support Your Guru beSur is not a replacement for your Guru. It is a practice companion that helps you reinforce lessons, repeat exercises, and develop stronger swar control between classes.

About

Karunattu

Features
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Practise Carnatic music the way it is taught — in pure 22-śruti just intonation, never Western 12-TET semitones. Set your Sa, start the living tampura drone, and sing 35 free guided varisai lessons in a 4-phase interactive echo loop with real-time Sevi cents feedback — 100% offline and with no sign-in required. Whether you are singing your first steady Sa, mastering Jaṇṭa and Daṭṭu varisais, refining kampita and jāru gamakas, or keeping Ādi and Miśra Cāpu tāḷa, Karunattu gives students, teachers, and performers a mathematically authentic Carnatic companion on iPhone and iPad. WHY KARUNATTU IS UNIQUE • True 22-Śruti Just Intonation (Never 12-TET): Every swara, drone string, tuner target, and synthesized phrase resolves through per-rāga microtonal ratios across all 23 śruti grid positions. • 4-Phase Interactive Echo Loop: Don't just read notation — Listen to the reference phrase, Shadow along with the guide voice, Sing Solo against the tampura and mṛdaṅgam, and Review your per-swara cents accuracy. • 26 Ratnākara & Pārijāta Gamakas: Visualize and practise kampita, jāru, nokku, odukkal, sphurita, and pratyāhata pitch curves against rāga-specific target zones. • 175 Parametric Tāḷa Forms: Practise every combination of 7 sapta tāḷas × 5 jātis × 5 gatis (35 śūlādi tāḷas × 5 naḍai) with mṛdaṅgam theka and aṅga hand-gesture cues (beat, wave, finger counts). FREE FOREVER — ŚIṢYA (NO ACCOUNT NEEDED) • Guided Practice Path (35 Lessons): Step-by-step First Steps (4), Śarali Varisai (14), Jaṇṭa Varisai (9), Daṭṭu Varisai (3), and Sapta Tāḷa Alaṅkāras (5). • Living 4-String Tampura & Śruti Box: Continuous drone that follows you across the app with Pa / Ma / Ni tuning and fine cents offset. • Sevi Pitch & Swara Tuner: Real-time Carnatic swara detection, 22-śruti grid, cents needle, and longitudinal śruti drift memory. • 169-Rāga Library & 72-Mēḷakarta Wheel: Explore ārohaṇa, avarohaṇa, janya relationships, lakṣaṇa, 98 live kritis with synchronized sāhitya, and 24-hour Rāga Radio. • Compose Studio: Pick a rāga, a tāḷa, and an instrument from 17 microtonal studios to sketch your own phrases offline. PLUS — SĀDHAKA (FOR DEDICATED STUDENTS) • Voice, Doṣa & Gamaka Coaches: Live microtonal ornament coaching across 26 classical gamakas with actionable pitch-contour feedback on what you sing. • Full Curriculum & Self-Review: Varnam and Kriti practice loops, self-review recordings, śruti drift heatmap, Svara Lane, Rāga ID ear training, and Nartana (108 Bharatanāṭyam karaṇa study pages). PRO — KALAKAR (CREATE, RENDER & EXPORT) • Studio Render & Export: Mastered audio (WAV) and MIDI export, Manodharma (Ālāpana, Neraval, Kalpanāswaram), Film Composer, 3-band practice stem split, and custom Rāga and Tāḷa builders. • Pro is a Carnatic creation, render, and export companion, not a full DAW. PROVENANCE & PRIVACY • Generated concert arrangements are labelled "Karunattu Original — kacheri-format reconstruction", with composer, sāhitya, rāga, tāḷa, and source explicitly shown and kept distinct from archival recordings. • No account and no personal-data collection. Audio is processed 100% on your device; practice history and recordings stay on your iPhone or iPad. SUBSCRIPTION & TERMS Karunattu Free requires no account or subscription. Karunattu Plus (Sādhaka) and Karunattu Pro (Kalakar) are available as optional monthly or annual auto-renewable subscriptions. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period in Account Settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://karunattu.com/privacy

Screenshots

Karunattu4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: beSur at none against Karunattu's 4. beSur also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). Karunattu's advantage is device support. On price there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Karunattu sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. beSur asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard3 real differences · 3 level
beSur versus Karunattu: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterbeSurKarunattu
PriceFreeFree
Update frequency—Every 2 weeks
Ads—No
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Devices—iPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size105 MB54 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMarva AI LLPPrabaharan Manoharan

In-app purchases

None

beSur

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

Karunattu

Subscriptions4
  • Karunattu Plus$4.991 Month
  • Karunattu Pro Monthly$19.991 Month
  • Karunattu Plus Yearly$24.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Karunattu Pro Yearly$99.991 Year

Questions

Is beSur free?
beSur is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Karunattu free?
Karunattu is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

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