Touring on this music highway isn’t the identical for everybody. The journey feels totally different relying on who you might be and the place you come from.
India is dwelling to many languages, and whereas Hindi and English dominate the mainstream (largely because of Bollywood and the affect of worldwide popular culture), music in native languages is steadily gaining floor. Punjabi music, particularly, is scripting its personal world chapter, not simply by means of heavyweights like Diljit Dosanjh, Karan Aujla, and AP Dhillon, but additionally by means of rising stars like Talwiinder and Josh Brar. But, artists working in less-heard languages face hurdles. Tulu band Alva Kuuto, who write and carry out solely authentic songs, have constructed a following in Bengaluru and Mangaluru since 2022, however battle to scale past. “Gig venue infrastructure is unhealthy,” they are saying, noting a scarcity of curiosity from venues and curators. Turning down requests to carry out Bollywood covers has additionally price them exhibits.
Nonetheless, Alva Kuuto stay hopeful: “There’s a curious viewers who connects past language. For somebody in Africa or Argentina, there’s no distinction between Hindi and Tulu.” Their expertise displays a bigger reality—good music exists in each language, if gatekeepers select to pay attention.
For a lot of multilingual musicians, attempting to determine the place they slot in, when it comes to their background and id, might be difficult. As India-born, California-raised pop artist, Zoya shares: “I’ve at all times wrestled with being the Indian lady in America and the American lady in India… most of them tied to the query of whether or not I’m ‘Indian sufficient.’” She talks about feeling strain to suit a sure concept: “In India, it’s been robust to suit into the trade’s prescribed packing containers, significantly as somebody whose sound and elegance doesn’t incorporate any Indian components… There’s this underlying expectation, and at occasions strain, to adapt… For some time, it felt like my solely paths ahead have been to fuse my music with conventional influences, go the Bollywood route, or reinvent myself as a lady DJ.” She provides that the expectation is the alternative within the US: “I’ve been informed I have to be a ‘crossover’ artist—mainly, to insert extra of my heritage into my music in an effort to stand out. It’s this fixed balancing act of being anticipated to symbolize a tradition whereas additionally being informed I’m not fairly becoming into it.”
Roadblocks for Girls and Marginalized Teams
Then there’s the journey for ladies and folks of different genders. Girls have at all times been musicians, however stepping into essential jobs behind the scenes continues to be very, very laborious. The numbers present this clearly: in response to a 2025 report by USC Annenberg, solely 5.9 per cent of manufacturing credit have been held by ladies in 2024, a slight improve from 2.4 per cent in 2012 however nonetheless a stark underrepresentation. Moreover, one other report states ladies comprised 18.9 per cent of songwriters in 2024, up from 11 per cent in 2012, but they continue to be considerably outnumbered by their male counterparts. Within the broader trade (as reported by Forbes), ladies make up 21.7 per cent of artists, 12.3 per cent of songwriters, and solely 2.1 per cent of producers.
The explanations for this are sophisticated. There are biases, outdated programs, and gendered expectations about what jobs ladies can do. They usually receives a commission much less, have fewer mentors, and really feel the strain to show themselves greater than males, particularly in technical roles. Girls additionally face expectations to adapt to magnificence requirements and infrequently need to stability work with societal expectations at dwelling.
Prachee Mashru, the founding father of a women-led PR and inventive consultancy referred to as THIS?, shares her view: “There are nonetheless a whole lot of occasions ladies are checked out as an afterthought. The work we pour our coronary heart and soul into is commonly dismissed as a ardour mission, or simply not taken significantly. Girls don’t wish to take up house as a result of that house was by no means created for us within the first place.” Regardless of the challenges, Mashru is attempting to carve out her personal lanes: “I wish to be that individual for the ladies round me—particularly by means of my IP Women Women Women, which is a protected house for ladies to celebration and have enjoyable, the place artists can take management of their artwork with out feeling like they should tone being ‘girly’ down or carry out a sure model of themselves to be taken significantly.”
Nayantara Kumar, the co-founder of Misfits Inc., agrees that change is gradual. “India’s music trade has come a great distance, however real inclusivity continues to be a piece in progress,” she says. “There are structural silos. This limits collaboration and entry, particularly for unbiased artists who usually miss out on visibility, funding, and alternatives just because they’re not a part of the ‘proper’ networks.” She factors out that the trade can also be mired in tokenism: “Even at present, pageant lineups and brand-led occasions usually characteristic ladies as a way to tick packing containers moderately than create actual, intentional house [for them]. It’s not unusual to echo a legitimate level and be ignored, just for it to achieve traction when repeated by a male counterpart.” For Kumar, equity means greater than appearances: “For India’s music trade to be really inclusive, we have to transfer previous optics and start levelling entry—throughout gender, style, and geography—for all artists who’re constructing their journeys independently.”
Ruth Mohinani, the top of operations (India) at Desi Trill sees fewer feminine artists within the scene however notes their impression: “Like the general media and leisure trade, Indian feminine expertise in music is certainly on the decrease aspect, however they drive very excessive engagement and authenticity.” She advocates for a better inclusion of feminine artists and highlights the shortage of LGBTQ+ illustration at dwell occasions. “I nonetheless wish to see a mandate set at dwell occasions to have a minimal of two feminine acts of their general programming. Queer illustration continues to be missing at giant.” She sees progress in pay, however notes, “Pay parity has developed over time. I’m starting to see ladies commanding virtually equal payouts as males however we nonetheless have some time to go to be at par. I’d nonetheless prefer to see a 50:50 male to feminine ratio within the workforce, however that’s the character of our tradition and society.”
Social and Financial Disparities
The journey for artists can differ primarily based on social background and monetary sources. The legacy of the caste system continues to restrict alternatives for some communities. Artists with cash, legacy, and connections usually get a head begin, whereas monetary struggles weigh closely on unbiased musicians. Excessive ticket costs additionally exclude many followers, as seen with the Coldplay live performance in India. Individuals with disabilities and the LGBTQ+ neighborhood face much more obstacles.
Regardless of these challenges, artists like Arivu and The Casteless Collective are making their voices heard. Arivu, a Dalit rapper, makes use of his music to deal with caste-based discrimination and has even spoken out about being sidelined from the success of the massively viral monitor “Take pleasure in Enjaami” in 2021. The Casteless Collective, based by filmmaker and activist Pa. Ranjith and Tenma, shines a light-weight on matters like caste-based violence and systemic oppression, utilizing their music as a way to push for social justice.
Queer artists like Sushant Divgikar (performing as Rani Ko-HE-Nur) and singer-songwriter Pragya Pallavi are additionally carving out house, difficult stereotypes and talking overtly about id, love, and rights by means of their music. Nonetheless, regardless of a handful of examples, the trade stays frayed by the socio-economic inequalities that have an effect on our society at giant.
Geographical Challenges and Connections
As talked about earlier than, the place you might be in India additionally impacts your journey. Main cities are large hubs. Whereas on-line instruments have helped put regional music on the map, artists exterior large cities discover it more durable to get gigs or community with trade insiders.
Mohinani talks concerning the want for extra venues: “Whereas we now have quite a few 700 pax venues, we’re nonetheless missing 1500 to 2000 pax capability fastened venues, which ought to undoubtedly be the subsequent rung in infrastructure growth.” She notices repeated bookings on account of unfair causes: “There’s additionally a really excessive repeat issue of programming the identical acts time and again. I believe the repetition is because of backstage politics and egos, subjective opinions and favoritism within the trade. I’d like to see extra transparency in practices and objectivity sooner or later.”
Constructing a Extra Open Street
Regardless of detours, many behind the scenes are working laborious to construct higher roads. Tej Brar, Head of Festivals at Nodwin Gaming and the Competition Director of NH7 Weekender, talks about their efforts to curate lineups that symbolize area of interest voices and guarantee honest pay for all of the artists. “Our programming group curates a various line-up throughout genres, languages, and identities every year. Fairness in compensation is one other cornerstone of our method. Each artist ought to really feel revered and valued for his or her work.” Brar emphasizes that inclusivity is core to their work: “Inclusivity isn’t a field we tick; it’s a part of our tradition, shaping each expertise we create.”
Whereas know-how and social media have helped artists attain extra listeners, streaming platforms have been criticized for providing unfair royalties. Even profitable artists have spoken out about how streaming offers don’t at all times pretty compensate creators for his or her work.
The Vacation spot
So, is the music highway in India inclusive sufficient? It’s a journey with many ups and downs. There’s progress, with extra unbiased and regional music, and extra discuss equity. However the highway continues to be uneven. To really open this highway for each artist and each voice, it’s not sufficient to simply see the issues; we have to actively construct new roads, create bridges, and make a robust promise collectively. We have to ensure that the grand, lovely symphony of India’s music consists of each single be aware, performed by each single traveler, regardless of the place they began. The true aim isn’t only a profitable music enterprise, however one that actually exhibits the colourful, complicated, and numerous coronary heart of India itself.