The raga Basant Mukhari is widely acknowledged as the Hindustani adaptation of the Carnatic raga Vakulabharanam. The Hindustani avatar is, associated with the eclectic initiatives of Acharya S.N. Ratanjankar, the founder principal of the Maris College of Music in Lucknow. Some of the greatest musical minds of the country have, in recent years, worked on giving the raga a Hindustani personality. Despite this, the raga remains, to this day, subject to a considerable diversity in treatment.

The import of Vakulabharanam from the Carnatic tradition was, in fact, more like a second coming for this melodic entity. The first was a mature raga called Hijaz, a melody of Persian origin, documented by V.N. Bhatkhande in the 1930s. We do not know approximately when Hijaz entered Hindustani music.