Indie musicians are always underrated and very less explored. In a Bollywood dominated music scene of the country, independent artists and their songs remain unnoticed and unexplored to the Indian audience. New age music lovers love to listen to quality music. Various new age indie musicians are now getting more attention for their creations and a rise in their views on various online streaming platforms. The indie music scene in India is reviving now, which is a very positive sign for the music scene of the country.
Being a vibrant country, India has always been very rich culturally and musically. The 60s, 70s and 90s bollywood music is still a gem. However, Bollywood music of that era was very vibrant. Independent music in India has seen the biggest boom so far in the 90s. A time when bollywood music was very popular, indie artists such as Lucky Ali, Apache Indians, Alisha Chinnoy and indie bands like Euphoria managed to become household names with their music. However, Bollywood became monopoly again after the 90s.
Bollywood being an industry has all the machineries available for promotion of their music which the indie artists are lacking of. With the introduction of various online music streaming apps like Spotify, Gaana,com, Savan including YouTube, indie artists in India are now becoming popular amongst the new age indian music lovers.
The rise of indie music in India:
The rise of indie music in India started after the introduction of desi hip hop in the country. However countless singers and bands were releasing songs and albums prior to this but used to remain unnoticed. The hip hop boom made artists like Honey Singh extremely popular amongst the Indian audience. Independent music was never commercial but slowly after 2012, various established artists like Armaan Malik, Darshan raval and Jubin Nautiyal started releasing singles which indeed gained a lot of popularity. Prateek Kuhad, the first indie artist, became very popular amongst the millennials through YouTube without any banner backing him. Bands like The Local Train, Nalayak, Sifar, Dream Note are some of the big names in the indie scene now. Beside YouTube and other streaming apps, The local train and Nalayak became popular with various college festivals across the country. The true hip hop revolution in India started from the slums of Mumbai. With artists like Divine, Emiway Bantai, MC Altaf and Naezy with very powerful lyrics and very unique flows, a new genre of music was introduced to the Indian audience. Singles of Divine and Emiway managed to gain viewers in millions which is an indication towards a change in mindset of the Indian audience. Singers like Osho Jain and Ankur Tiwari are now being noticed. Some Youtube channels like Last cigarette are now promoting Indie songs by various artists across India as well as from Pakistan.
These indie musicians and bands are changing the music scene of the country:
1. Prateek Kuhad: The biggest name in the independent music scene of India, Prateek kuhad has more than 450K subscribers with 46 videos. His debut album In Tokens and Charms released in 2015 managed to earn MTV Europe music award, Indian Album of the year from iTunes and best pop Artist at the Radio City Freedom Award along with the first place in the prestigious International Songwriting Competition.
2. The Local Train: The most famous indie band at present and the most sought after band for various prestigious college shows across the country. Their song Aaoge Tum Kabhi was picked up for bollywood movie “Angry Indian Goddess”. With deep lyrics and unique arrangement, this band is one of the pioneers of indie band revolution in India.Their Youtube channel has more than 452K subscribers with31 uploads.
3. Osho Jain: An amazing musician with very deep lyrics, Osho Jain has more than 80K subscribers in Youtube with 17 uploads. His songs are very meaningful with soft musical arrangements.
4. Nalayak the band: With various prestigious college shows and an album, this Chandigarh based band is one of the most famous indie bands among the Indian millennials. Their official Youtube channel has more than 58K subscribers with 14 uploades.
5. Dream Note: Dream Note is an amazing band from India with very meaningful lyrics with outstanding musical arrangements. This band is becoming popular with various online streaming apps as well as through Youtube and Instagram. Their official channel has more than 140K subscribers with 14 uploades.
6.Taba Chake: Hailed from the state of Arunachal Pradesh, Taba Chake has more than 110K subscribers with 7 uploades. His songs itself is a different genre. He sings both in Hindi and English.
Conclusion: With various artists coming up with new releases in the indie scene as well as the penetration of streaming apps like Spotify and YouTube in India, the Indie music scene is India is soon going to see a boom.