The venu is an ancient transverse flute used in Indian classical music. Classified as an aerophone, the instrument is typically constructed from bamboo and is played by blowing into it from the side.
While similar flutes exist in northern Indian music under the name bansuri, the venu remains a prominent fixture in the South Indian Carnatic music tradition. It appears in historical Vedic texts such as the Rigveda, where it is referred to as nadi and tunava. The instrument is known by various regional names across southern India, including pullanguḻal in Tamil, oodakuḻal or kurungu kuḻal in Malayalam, koḷalu or muraļi in Kannada, and pillana grōvi or vēṇuvu in Telugu.