A veena (also known as a vina), was a type of stick zither with the fingerboard stretched between two gourds, but it underwent structural change in the 16th century. The modern veena instrument is a kind of lute, with a hollow neck attached to a large hollow body and a soundboard made of wood and is held diagonally from lap to shoulder. It has a softer, sweeter tone than the sitar and is the principal instrument of classical southern Indian music.
