By Sankalp Srivastava
Mainstream Bollywood music may soon have to come to terms with the skewed perception of reality it presents and the little value it provides as an art form. As John Lennon himself said, Music reflects the state that the society is in.” Mainstream music is indicative of the zeitgeist, and music as an art form has been utilised across the world as a form of protest against tyrannical governments and discrimination. It has led the way in growing cultural sensibilities, as is evident from the history of genres in music ranging from blues to hip-hop, and even pop. It has also been a way of bringing attention to prevalent societal problems.
However, this is widely different when we talk about Hindi film music, which has played an outsized role in the world of Hindi film as stated in an article in the South Asian Popular Culture Journal. Oonche se ooncha banda, potty pe baithe nanga; Phir kaahe ki society, saali kaahe ka paakhanda,” profound lyricism such as this, combined with the self-professed love for creating music that cannot be heard outside of a dance floor has attracted the contempt of many music critics, and with good reason.
Understanding the problem
To begin with, as stated in this article in the Harvard Political Review, there is a prevalence of morally questionable tropes in Bollywood music that completely subvert social norms. While the whole world is looking to adopt, a more egalitarian approach to casting female leads, Bollywood subverts to cast one “item number” after another just to publicise a movie. In fact, as the article goes on to say, modern Indian cinema presents many women as objects of desire and nothing more. Item numbers, according to the author are at the heart of the issue, and the effect of such widespread objectification cannot be ignored, regardless of the claim of writers and producers that it is the only category of music that sells.
Given that the Hindi film industry racks a profit of over Rs. 13 thousand crores along with a music industry which is a $150 million business, it goes without saying the industry has certain responsibilities towards the people it serves. Given that watching movies is a favourite national past time, it cannot act recklessly and aimlessly with only a profit motive. The fact that Bollywood affects public tastes and sensibilities is no secret, with the result being censorship based on a conservative outlook ever so often. The prying eyes of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) do not often let item numbers pass through, but at the same time enforce contradictory standards.
Moving beyond the profit motive
Even if we were to assume that players in the music industry have a right to focus on profit-making, one has to consider the opportunity cost of the monopoly exercised by a music industry thriving with plagiaristic content, reluctantly remixed classics and overly dramatic reality shows masquerading as breakthrough opportunities to their participants.
By resorting to the same themes in music repeatedly, it creates a nauseating effect on most listeners who are crippled by a lack of choice. The effect of the almost exclusive ownership of music listening space has been most harmful to artists who play independently. The repeatedly used formula of making songs that revolve solely around romance contrasts widely with the prevalent themes in the now burgeoning independent music scene.
Independent music in India
Independent music has been around for quite a while in India now, such that it has grown from bootleg cassette tapes to multi-genre music festivals, and is now seeing a rise in international appeal. With artists that cover themes from complicated concept albums (Scribes Mark of Teja) to instrumental guitar music that has received wide critical acclaim (Blackstratblues Nights in Shining Karma), the independent music industry deserves much more credit than it receives. One need only look at this playlist from Firstpost to see how their music has an empowering effect in the Indian subcontinent. Add to that, vernacular bands like Avial, Swarathma, and Indian Ocean, and it is evident that independent music is far more inclusive and genuine in its message than mainstream music.
Veteran musician Vehrnon Ibrahim suggested in a recent interview with Rolling Stone India, that it would be greatly effective if radio stations were to commit to playing a few songs by independent music creators since it will automatically result in the tracks receiving airplay and catching on amongst the general public. We would not be the first to do so as the Canadian music industry implemented similar provisions in their airplay regulations (popularly called, CanCon) back in the 1970s and saw an immediate rise in artists receiving both international and domestic success (Bryan Adams, Rush) that continues to this day (Arcade Fire, The Weeknd).
Adoption of Indian independent music by radio stations, TV music channels needs to be done in order to level the playing field and ensure the public doesn’t suffer from the faults of mainstream music. While everyone is running to ensure they squeeze out the cash cow that is mainstream music, perhaps what may have been ignored is that there is a lot more to gain from independent music. One cannot help but appreciate the efforts of independent record labels and platforms such as Ok Listen, OML, amongst others. However, without the willingness of the Bollywood music industry, the monopoly is unlikely to break soon. The failure to break through the same will be a great loss for both listeners and the industry.