Shree raga is an ancient raga regarded as the melodic personification of royalty. Though its tonal content has changed over the years, raga Shree has consistently been picturised as a King, either being saluted to by his courtiers or being serenaded to by his musicians.

Lalit is picturised in two separate, though interconnected, forms. One is as ragini (female) Lalita who lies forlorn on her bed watching her lover leave to return to another woman. The second is as raga (male) Lalit who returns home in the morning, concealing signs of his dalliance with another woman. Both images represent Lalit as a melody of separation, of unsatiated love emphasising the desire to be reunited with the lover. This characterisation of Lalit echoes with its performance time at dawn, highlighting the separation of night from day.