Cons:
Why do Indian singers not achieve the same level of recognition as Indian actors? Simply because Bollywood (Hindi film) music videos allocate half of the song’s face value to the actors who lip-sync to the music. The entire energy and visual representation are conveyed by the actors, overshadowing the playback singers who actually convey the song’s emotions with their voices. Consequently, playback singers do not receive the visual recognition they deserve.
Pros:
Don’t get me wrong, Bollywood playback singing has its advantages as well. The playback singers do not feel the pressure to succeed solely based on their own credibility. They sing situational songs for movies, mostly written and composed by other songwriters. If a song features in a Dharma or a Yash Raj movie, half the battle of becoming popular is won. The song’s success then depends on its luck and promotion. This is why there are fewer singer-songwriters in India, as most focus on honing their vocal skills rather than writing and composing songs.
Social Media:
Today, music enthusiasts can search for musicians online and follow them on social media, but these accounts are not as glamorous as those of the actors who benefit from production budgets to create larger-than-life sequences. Actors will always have greater visual relevance in both the song and the movie.
Popular Indian playback singers on social media must resort to eye-catching tactics to retain their fan base. Most of them are releasing non-movie singles and albums to showcase their audio & visual identity.
Comparing the US and the Indian industry:
In Hollywood, can we imagine Billie Eilish singing a song as a playback singer while Margot Robbie lip-syncs it in the Barbie movie? Would Billie Eilish have achieved the same level of success with "What Was I Made For" if the visual focus was solely on the actor and this was Eilish's first break in the mainstream music industry? Not really honestly. Fortunately, the US music industry is not dependent on Hollywood movies, unlike in India.
Digital revolution:
With globalization, music production has sparked a revolution, and many young musicians are now inspired by Western artists, leading them to learn to play instruments as well.
Future of Indian music:
However, the biggest question remains: will music labels in India ever invest in music and musicians alone, as film production houses do for their movie songs? Will skilled musicians achieve the same level of stardom as actors? With the rising popularity of realistic movies on OTT platforms and the option to skip songs in movies, will Bollywood playback singing continue to be a viable career path for budding talents? Or is playback singing destined to become mere background scores in the near future?
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