a type of sabhaa gaanam, a musical form or composition that uses jatis (such as dheem, takiTa, taam, jham) as rhythmic phrases instead of words. It is composed to create a sense of enthusiasm and joy (the meaning of tillaanaa), and said to have originated from another composition called “tri-tillaanaa.” It has crisp, attractive swara patterns, with saahitya containing both jatis (solkaTTus) and words, performed in madhyama kaalam. Some contain only pallavi and anupallavi, while others have only pallavi and caraNam, each section with different swara patterns. Pallavi and anupallavi have jatis, while the caraNam may have swaras, words, and jatis. Tillaanaa is usually the 7th or last piece in a bharatanaaTyam dance performance and one of the last pieces in a vocal or instrumental concert, giving a dramatic flourish to the end of the performance

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