In ancient Hindu sculpture, painting, and mythology, the mridangam is often depicted as the instrument of choice for a number of deities including Ganesha (the remover of obstacles) and Nandi, who is the vehicle and follower of Shiva.

Nandi is said to have played the mridangam during Shiva's primordial tandava dance, causing a divine rhythm to resound across the heavens.

One of the earliest Nepal Bhasa manuscripts on music is a treatise on this instrument called Mridanga anukaranam.

[8] The mridangam is a double-sided drum whose body is usually made using a hollowed piece of jackfruit wood about an inch thick.

These straps are put into a state of high tension to stretch out the circular membranes on either side of the hull, allowing them to resonate when struck.

The goat skin covering the smaller aperture is anointed in the center with a black disk made of rice flour, ferric oxide powder and starch.

[9][10] Immediately prior to use in a performance, the leather covering the wider aperture is made moist and a spot of paste made from semolina (rawa) and water is applied to the center, which lowers the pitch of the wider membrane and gives it a very powerful resonating bass sound.

Nowadays, rubber gum is also used to loosen the membrane helping in creating the bass sound, and its advantage is that unlike semolina, it will not stick on hands.

This is achieved by placing the mridangam upright with its larger side facing down, and then striking the tension-bearing straps located along of circumference of the smaller membrane with a heavy object (such as a stone).

A wooden peg is sometimes placed between the stone and the mridangam during the tuning procedure to ensure that the force is exerted at precisely the point where it is needed.

There have recently been reports of gradually altered gait and balance, varying in severity, in those that play the mridangam for long periods of time in asymmetrical positions, especially with poor attention to body posture.

It is not known how prevalent the issues are and some artists do not experience any symptoms, although this might be due to an awareness of health and physical appearance not being so significant some countries.

The impacts can result in difficulty in walking and running efficiently and may cause pain later in life and in old age.

The combination of these finger strokes produces complex mathematical patterns that have both aesthetic and theoretical appeal.

Classically, training is by dharmic apprenticeship and includes both the yoga of drum construction and an emphasis on the internal discipline of voicing mridangam tone and rhythm both syllabically and linguistically, in accordance with Rigveda, more than on mere performance.

Types of Talam, each with specific angas and aksharas: Today the mridangam is most widely used in Carnatic music performances.

One of the highlights of a modern Carnatic music concert is the percussion solo (thani avarthanam), where the mridangam artist and other percussionists such as kanjira, morsing, and ghatam vidwans exchange various complex rhythmic patterns, culminating in a grand finale where the main artist resumes where he or she left off.

[citation needed] Mridangam is used as an accompanying instrument in Yakshagana Himmela (orchestra) where it is called the maddale.

[13] In Koodalmanikyam Temple, Irinjalakuda, it is a tradition that Mridangamela is held by children of the age group 3 years and above, as soon as the Utsavam is flagged off.

Mridangamela had been performed at Chembai Sangeetholsavam for the past 35 years orchestrated by Korambu Mridanga Kalari.