Filmi
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Filmi (Hindi: फ़िल्मी, Urdu: فلمی) is Indian popular music as written and performed for Indian cinema. There is constant work for pop music composers — or music directors, to use the Indian term. Movie soundtracks are released as tapes and CDs, before the movie is released and account for the bulk of popular music sales in India.
This may be partly due to widespread music piracy in India. Songs released only on CD may be popular, but they will not necessarily make any money for the artists, thanks to illegal copying. A composer makes more money as a music director, due to up-front payments by film-makers, and also gets free publicity. This is also true of singers and musicians. Filmi thus attracts some of the most talented Indian artistes.
Why musicals? Some say that the long tradition of Indian temple spectacles, sacred dramas danced and sung, still shapes Indian tastes. Others point to the linguistic diversity of India. Many languages are spoken and there are a number of regional cinemas. Only films that transcend language barriers have any hope of being all-India hits. Music, not being tied to any one language, expresses the feelings of the characters even to people who can't follow the dialogue.
Indian cinema does not require that its performers act, dance, and sing — they must merely act and dance. They only pretend to sing, lip-synching songs sung by professional playback singers. Playback singers need not be beautiful or photogenic; they need only be supremely good singers. They tend to sing for many films, have long careers and be adored by their fans.
(One might usefully contrast the forthrightness of Indian practice with Hollywood's assumption that musical stars should be actors, dancers, and singers. When Hollywood does use playback singers, the practice is buried in the end-of-film credits and ignored as much as possible by the publicists. Perhaps one reason that Hollywood does not produce as many musicals as India is that it is harder to find performers with the multiple talents required.)
Filmi is often said to have begun in 1931, with the release of Ardeshir M. Irani's Alam Ara and its popular soundtrack. In the earliest years of the Indian cinema, filmi was generally Indian (classical and folk) in inspiration, with some Western elements. Over the years, the Western elements have increased significantly.
How much of current filmi is "Western" or "Indian" in style is a matter of dispute, as is the desirability of the increasing internationalization of a formerly regional style. Some fans prefer the classic music of the past; others see it as old-fashioned and whole-heartedly embrace novelty.
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[edit] Music directors
R. C. Boral, Pankaj Mullick, Anil Biswas and Naushad were noteworthy music directors of the 1940s, writing scores redolent of the elegance of Northern India's Moghul and Rajput courts. The 1950s and 1960s, considered the 'golden age' of the Hindi film music, was fortunate to have music composers like Shankar Jaikishan, Naushad, S. D. Burman, O. P. Nayyar, Madan Mohan, C. Ramchandra, Roshan , Vasant Desai, Kalyanji Anandji and Khaiyyam. As Indian cinema segued into the go-go years of the 1960s and 1970s, pop artists like R.D. Burman and duos like Nadeem-Shravan and Jatin-Lalit gave filmi a stronger western flavor. The legendary Ilaiyaraaja and Raveendran became phenomenally successful during the 1980s and 1990s especially in southern India. In the 1990s and 2000s, the dominant force in filmi has been the phenomenally successful A. R. Rahman, who vaulted from fame in the Tamil film industry to success in Bollywood and finally to hit musicals in London and New York.
See: Indian film music directors
[edit] Playback singer
A playback singer is a singer whose song is pre-recorded for use in films. The singer records the song on a soundtrack and the actors or actresses lip sync the song for the cameras. This is a form of singing that is most highly developed in the Indian sub-continent.Popular playback singers in India enjoy the same star status as actors. The songs of a film and the quality of the music — its music director (composer), lyricist and singer have often determined the success of a film. Often film albums are released before the films are released and therefore there is sometimes a mismatch between the songs on film and the songs on its CD or LP or tape.
Nihira Joshi, Asha Bhosle, Geeta Dutt, Alka Yagnik, Lata Mangeshkar, Kavita Krishnamurthy,Shreya Ghoshal, Sunidhi Chauhan. Mohammed Rafi, Hemant Kumar, Talat Mehmood, Mukesh, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey, Dr. K. J. Yesudas, and S. P. Balasubrahmanyam . Younger singers include Udit Narayan, Kumar Sanu, Abhijeet, M. G. Sreekumar , Sonu Nigam, and Hariharan are some playback singers.
for more See: Playback singer
[edit] Lyricists
In the 1950s and 60s, lyricists like Shailendra, Hasrat Jaipuri, Sahir Ludhianvi, Raja Mehdi Ali Khan, Rajinder Krishan, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Bharat Vyas, Shakeel Badayuni, Qamar Jalalabadi, Jan Nissar Akhtar and S.H. Bihari wrote lyrics still fondly remembered today. Lyrics tended towards the literary and drew heavily on contemporary Urdu and Hindi poetry. The pop lyrics of later years are deplored by filmi traditionalists.
See details article Bollywood songs.
[edit] Instrumentalists
Instruments played as background to the vocals include:
- Bansuri
- Daf
- Dholak
- Harmonium
- Jal Tarang
- Khol
- Manjira
- Rabab
- Santoor
- Sarangi
- Sarod
- Shehnai
- Sitar
- Tabla
- Tabla tarang
- Tanpura
- Violin.
Unlike music directors and playback singers, instrumentalists do not get film credits and are less likely to use movies as a springboard to popular success.
[edit] Popularity ratings
Binaca Geetmala was a very popular radio show presented by Ameen Sayani giving popularity ratings of Hindi film songs from Bollywood on a weekly basis, listened to by millions of Hindi music lovers (akin to Billboard Hot 100 list of songs). It ran in various incarnations from 1952 to 1993. Annual lists of the most popular songs were played at year end. The list was compiled on the basis sales of records in India.[1] It was the most popular radio program before Satellite television took over in India sometime in 1990s. Currently, Hindi filmi songs are sold on tape & CD compilations, played as promos and in programs on various cable & satellite television channels and radio stations, with different popularity ratings claiming different songs as being on the top.
[edit] Accusations of plagiarism
Because popular music directors score a great many films over the course of a year, there is always a tendency to cut corners and speed production by plagiarizing. The usual target is a catchy Western tune with proven audience appeal. For example, one production number in Dil (1990) is based on Carl Perkins' Blue Suede Shoes, sung with Hindi lyrics. Of late the Indian film industry has been gaining visibility outside India and now there is real legal risk in plagiarism. Some producers have actually paid for the musical rights to popular Western songs. The Indian audience is also much better acquainted with Western music and films these days and more apt to notice the imitations. It would be hard to measure musical plagiarism with any exactness, but it is probably diminishing. Accusations of plagiarism in filmi music are discussed at this site, [1].
[edit] Wider success for filmi
Filmi is also making converts and exerting influence beyond the usual Desi audiences. Western music stores carry Bollywood compilations. Baz Luhrman showcases the song "Chamma Chamma" from China Gate in his 2002 movie Moulin Rouge!. A. R. Rahman, one of the most popular current music directors, now has a musical, Bombay Dreams, playing in London and New York.
Non-Indians interested in sampling filmi can listen to several Internet radio stations. If local music stores don't carry filmi, CDs can be purchased online or at local Indian grocery/spice/video stores. Some CDs are simply movie soundtracks; others are compilations of favorite songs by popular music directors or playback singers. Consult those Wikipedia articles for lists of popular artists.
[edit] Internet radio stations playing filmi
- theMusiK.Net
- ApnaRadio
- Desi Radio
- hindi movie
- Music Plugin
- Raaga.com
- Radio Masala
- Music India online
