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{{short description|Music produced for India's mainstream motion picture industry}}
{{More citations needed|date=February 2022}}
{{Indian music|expanded=Genres}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2022}}
'''Filmi''' ({{literal|of films}}) music soundtracks are music produced for India's mainstream motion picture industry and written and performed for [[Cinema of India|Indian cinema]]. In cinema, [[List of Indian film music directors|music directors]] make up the main body of composers; the songs are performed by [[playback singer]]s and the genre represents 72% of the music sales market in India.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8405891.stm | work=BBC News | title=Plans to start India music awards | date=10 December 2009 | access-date=2 May 2010 | first=Prachi | last=Pinglay | archive-date=27 January 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200127131800/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8405891.stm | url-status=live }}</ref>

Filmi music tends to have appeal across India, Nepal, Pakistan and overseas, especially among the [[Non-resident Indian and person of Indian origin|Indian diaspora]]. Songs are often in different languages depending on the target audience, for example in Hindi or Tamil. Playback singers are usually more noted for their ability to sing rather than their charisma as performers. Filmi playback singers' level of success and appeal is tied to their involvement with film soundtracks of cinema releases with the highest box office ratings.

At the "Filmi Melody: Song and Dance in Indian Cinema" archive presentation at [[UCLA]], filmi was praised as a generally more fitting term for the tradition than "Bombay melody", "suggesting that the exuberant music and melodrama so closely identified with the Hindi commercial cinema produced in Bombay (Mumbai) is truly pan-Indian."<ref>UCLA International Institute. 2005. Screening - Nayakan (Hero). Available from: http://www.international.ucla.edu/showevent.asp?eventid=3700 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206024741/http://www.international.ucla.edu/showevent.asp?eventid=3700 |date=6 December 2008 }}. Accessed 25 November 2008.</ref>

==Origins==
{{See|Hindi film music}}

In the earliest years of Indian cinema, filmi music was generally Indian (classical Carnatic, Hindustani, and village folk) in inspiration; over the years, Western elements have increased significantly.{{Citation needed|date=January 2008}} However, film soundtracks continue to be very diverse, sometimes fusing genres or reverting to entirely classical music. Examples of this can be found throughout the history of filmi music.

==Music directors==
{{Main|List of Indian film music directors}}
R. C. Boral, Harishchandra Bali, [[Pankaj Mullick]], Anil Biswas, [[Naushad Ali]], [[Khwaja Khurshid Anwar]] and [[S. Rajeswara Rao]] were noteworthy music directors of the 1940s. Rao, who scored the 1948 Tamil ''[[Chandralekha (1948 film)|Chandralekha]]'', the first all-India hit, continued music directing in Chennai until the 1980s. The 1950s and 1960s, included music composers like [[Shankar Jaikishan]], [[S. D. Burman]], [[O. P. Nayyar]], [[Madan Mohan (composer)|Madan Mohan]], [[Hemant Kumar]], [[C. Ramchandra]], [[Roshan (music director)|Roshan]], [[Vasant Desai]], [[Kalyanji–Anandji]]<ref>[http://arpjournal.com/858/the-cultural-economy-of-sound-reinventing-technology-in-indian-popular-cinema/ Carlo Nardi (July 2011). "The Cultural Economy of Sound: Reinventing Technology in Indian Popular Cinema". ''Journal on the Art of Record Production'', Issue 5] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615074412/http://arpjournal.com/858/the-cultural-economy-of-sound-reinventing-technology-in-indian-popular-cinema/ |date=15 June 2013 }}, {{ISSN|1754-9892}}.</ref> and [[Mohammed Zahur Khayyam|Khayyam]] in Hindi film music. [[K. V. Mahadevan]], Vishwanathan-Ramamoorthy, [[Laxmikant–Pyarelal]], [[G. Devarajan]], [[V. Dakshinamoorthy]] and [[M. S. Viswanathan]] were active music directors for more than 35 years from the 1950s.

As Indian cinema segued into the 1960s and 1970s, pop artists like [[R. D. Burman]], [[Bappi Lahiri]] and duos like [[Nadeem–Shravan]] and [[Jatin–Lalit]] gave filmi a stronger western flavor with composers [[Ilaiyaraaja]] and [[Raveendran]] who rose to fame during the 1970s and 1980s in Tamil film music.

Major musical forces in the 1990s and 2000s have included [[A. R. Rahman]], [[Nadeem–Shravan]], [[Pritam]], [[Himesh Reshammiya]], [[Harris Jayaraj]], [[Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy]], [[Vishal–Shekhar]], [[Vidyasagar (composer)|Vidyasagar]], [[Ramesh Narayan]], [[M. Jayachandran]], [[Yuvan Shankar Raja]], [[Deepak Dev]], [[Johnson (composer)|Johnson]], [[Anu Malik]], [[Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan]], [[Salim–Sulaiman]], [[Devi Sri Prasad]] etc. A. R. Rahman, who was described by ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine as "India's most prominent movie songwriter",<ref>[[Richard Corliss|Corliss, Richard]]. (1 January 2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20050105035149/http://www.time.com/time/columnist/corliss/article/0,9565,1013198,00.html That Old Feeling: Isn't It Rahmantic?] ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''. Retrieved on 25 May 2008.</ref> is widely accepted to be the most internationally recognized Indian musician.

==Playback singers==
{{Main|List of Indian playback singers|Playback singer}}

A playback singer is a singer who pre-records songs for use in films. The singer records the song and the actors or actresses [[lip-sync]] the song in front of the cameras, a form of singing that is characteristic of the Indian subcontinent. The songs of a film, the quality of the music and its music director (composer), lyricist and singer have often determined the success of a film. Film soundtracks are sometimes released before the film itself, resulting in a disparity between the soundtrack and the songs appearing in the film.

[[Kundan Lal Saigal]] was one of the earliest playback singers in the Indian music industry.{{citation needed|date=January 2014}} Notable playback singers include [[Kishore Kumar]], [[Lata Mangeshkar]], [[Asha Bhosle]], [[Mohammed Rafi]], [[Mukesh (singer)|Mukesh]], [[Manna Dey]], [[Hemant Kumar]], [[Talat Mahmood]], [[Mahendra Kapoor]], [[S. P. Balasubrahmanyam]], [[K. J. Yesudas]], [[S. Janaki]], [[P. Susheela]], [[K. S. Chithra]], [[M. G. Sreekumar|MG Sreekumar]], [[Udit Narayan]], [[Amit Kumar]], [[Alka Yagnik]], [[Sujatha Mohan|Sujatha]], [[Hemlata (singer)]], [[Kumar Sanu]], [[Armaan Malik]], 
[[Sonu Nigam]], [[Shaan (singer)|Shaan]], [[KK (singer)|KK]], [[Shreya Ghoshal]], [[Arijit Singh]], [[Mohit Chauhan]], [[Javed Ali]], [[Neha Kakkar]], [[Priyadarshini (singer)|Priyadarshini]] and many others.

==Lyricists==
{{main|Hindi film music}}

In the 1950s and 1960s, lyricists like [[Shailendra (lyricist)|Shailendra]], [[Hasrat Jaipuri]], [[Sahir Ludhianvi]], [[Raja Mehdi Ali Khan]], [[Rajendra Krishan]], [[Majrooh Sultanpuri]], [[Bharat Vyas]], [[Shakeel Badayuni]], [[Qamar Jalalabadi]], [[Anand Bakshi]], [[Jan Nisar Akhtar]] and [[S. H. Bihari]] wrote lyrics of many classic filmi songs. Lyrics tended towards the literary and drew heavily on contemporary [[Urdu]] and [[Hindi]] poetry. The south has seen poets like [[Kannadasan]], [[Vairamuthu]] and [[Vaali (poet)|Vaali]] rise to prominence, in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] poetry and literature alongside [[Vayalar Ramavarma]], [[P. Bhaskaran]], [[O. N. V. Kurup]] in the [[Malayalam music#Malayalam film music|Malayalam music industry]].{{citation needed|date=January 2014}}

Nowadays, some famous lyricists are [[Rashmi Virag]], [[Kunaal Vermaa]], [[Manoj Muntashir]], [[Kumaar|Rakesh Kumar]], [[Irshad Kamil]], [[Sayeed Quadri]], [[Armaan Malik]] etc.

==Popularity ratings==
[[Binaca Geetmala]], [[Ameen Sayani]]'s popular [[Hindi language]] radio show before [[satellite television]] took over in India sometime in the 1990s, gave weekly popularity ratings of Hindi film songs (akin to the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] list of songs). It ran in various incarnations from 1952 to 1993, and annual lists of the most popular songs were played at year-end. The list was compiled on the basis of record sales in [[India]].<ref name=Screen>Reliving the Geetmala lore. ''S.K. Screen'', Friday, 22 September 2000, transcript at {{cite web |url=http://www.ameensayani.com/reviews/review_4.htm |title=Ameen Sayani/Press Reviews |access-date=31 July 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050905081633/http://www.ameensayani.com/reviews/review_4.htm |archive-date=5 September 2005 }}, accessed 29 July 2006</ref> Currently, Hindi filmi songs are sold on tape and CD compilations, played as promos and in programs on various television channels and radio stations, with different popularity ratings claiming different songs as being on the top. In an annual exercise, a net-based effort [http://awards.giitaayan.com/ RMIM Puraskaar] lists all important Hindi film songs of the year, in addition to awarding songs for various categories.

==Accusations of plagiarism==
Because popular music directors score a great many films over the course of a year, accusations of plagiarizing abound. For example, one production number in ''[[Dil (1990 film)|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 the legal risks of plagiarism have been gaining importance. Some producers have actually paid for the musical rights to popular Western songs, as in ''[[Kal Ho Naa Ho]]''{{'s}} (2003) song, "[[Oh, Pretty Woman]]". Plagiarism has also existed within India, with several music directors in Bombay cinema lifting tunes from other "regional" industries.

There have also been accusations of plagiarism against foreigner musicians borrowing from Hindi filmi songs. For example, "[[Don't Phunk with My Heart]]" by [[The Black Eyed Peas]] was largely based on two 1970s filmi songs: "Ye Mera Dil Yaar Ka Diwana" from ''[[Don (1978 film)|Don]]'' (1978)  and "Ae Naujawan Hai Sab Kuchh Yahan" from ''[[Apradh]]'' (1972).<ref name=Apradh>{{YouTube|id=fWsSXjIDL3Q|title=ae naujawan hai sub kuchh yahan - Apradh 1972}}</ref> Both songs were originally composed by [[Kalyanji Anandji]] and sung by [[Asha Bhosle]].<ref name=Denselow>{{cite news|author=Robin Denselow|title=Kalyanji Anandji, The Bollywood Brothers|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=2 May 2008|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/may/02/worldmusic1|access-date=1 March 2009|location=London|archive-date=10 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110173323/http://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/may/02/worldmusic1|url-status=live}}</ref> Another example is "[[Addictive (song)|Addictive]]" sung by [[Truth Hurts (singer)|Truth Hurts]], which is lifted from [[Lata Mangeshkar]]'s "Thoda Resham Lagta Hai" from ''Jyoti'' (1981). This led to the copyright holders of the original song filing a lawsuit against [[DJ Quik]] and [[Dr. Dre]], the producers of "Addictive".<ref name="VH1"/> Filmi music composed by [[A. R. Rahman]] (who would later win two [[Academy Award]]s for the [[Slumdog Millionaire (soundtrack)|''Slumdog Millionaire'' soundtrack]]) has frequently been sampled by musicians elsewhere in the world, including the [[Singapore]]an artist [[Kelly Poon]], the [[Music of Uzbekistan|Uzbek artist]] Iroda Dilroz, the French rap group [[La Caution]], the American artist [[Ciara]], and the [[Germany|German]] band [[Löwenherz]],<ref>{{YouTube|id=afpx7qJB_ag|title=Löwenherz - Bis in die Ewigkeit}}</ref> among others.

==Wider success==
Filmi is also making exerting influence beyond the usual [[Desi]] audiences, with many Western music stores today carrying Indian music compilations. As early as 1978, the [[synthpop]] pioneers [[Haruomi Hosono]] and [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]] of the [[Yellow Magic Orchestra]] produced an [[Electronic music|electronic]] album ''Cochin Moon'' based on an [[Experimental music|experimental]] [[Fusion (music)|fusion]] between electronic music and Bollywood-inspired Indian music.<ref>{{cite web|author=Dominique Leone|date=19 July 2005|title=Hosono & Yokoo: Cochin Moon|publisher=[[Pitchfork Media]]|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/4016-cochin-moon/|access-date=26 May 2011|archive-date=15 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715081905/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/4016-cochin-moon/|url-status=live}}</ref> Later in 1988, [[Devo]]'s hit song "Disco Dancer" was inspired by the song "I am a Disco Dancer" from the Bollywood film ''[[Disco Dancer]]'' (1982).<ref>{{YouTube|id=T-BGltttqaE|title=DEVO - disco dancer with commentary}}</ref>

[[Baz Luhrmann]] showcases the song "[[Chamma Chamma]]" from ''[[China Gate (1998 film)|China Gate]]'' (1998) in his 2001 movie ''[[Moulin Rouge!|Moulin Rouge]]''. Another 2001 film ''[[Ghost World (film)|Ghost World]]'' featured [[Mohammed Rafi]]'s song "[[Jaan Pehechan Ho]]" from the 1965 film ''[[Gumnaam]]''. The 2002 song "[[Addictive (song)|Addictive]]", sung by Truth Hurts and produced by [[DJ Quik]] and [[Dr. Dre]], was lifted from [[Lata Mangeshkar]]'s "Thoda Resham Lagta Hai" from ''Jyoti'' (1981).<ref name=VH1>{{cite web|title=Truth Hurts |publisher=[[VH1]] |date=19 September 2002 |url=http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1457672/09192002/truth_hurts.jhtml |access-date=18 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090413172839/http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/1457672/09192002/truth_hurts.jhtml |archive-date=13 April 2009 }}</ref> [[The Black Eyed Peas]]' [[Grammy Award]] winning 2005 song "[[Don't Phunk with My Heart]]" was inspired by two 1970s Bollywood songs: "Ye Mera Dil Yaar Ka Diwana" from ''[[Don (1978 film)|Don]]'' (1978) and "Ae Naujawan Hai Sab Kuchh Yahan" from ''[[Apradh]]'' (1972).<ref name="Apradh"/> Both songs were originally composed by [[Kalyanji Anandji]], sung by [[Asha Bhosle]], and featured the dancer [[Helen (actress)|Helen]].<ref name=Denselow /> The songs "Mera Man Tera Pyasa" from the movie ''[[Gambler (film)|Gambler]]'' (1971) performed by [[Mohammed Rafi]], "Tere Sang Pyar Main" from the movie ''[[Nagin (1976 film)|Nagin]]'' (1976) performed by [[Lata Mangeshkar]], and "Wada Na Tod" also by Lata Mangeshkar from the movie ''[[Dil Tujhko Diya]]'' (1987) were featured in ''[[Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (soundtrack)|Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind]]'' (2004). Scores from [[Tamil cinema|Chennai Tamil films]] have appeared in productions such as ''[[Lord of War]]'' (2005) and ''[[The Accidental Husband]]'' (2008). [[Ilaiyaraaja]] won the Gold Remi Award for Best Music Score jointly with film composer [[M. S. Viswanathan]] at the WorldFest-Houston Film Festival for the Tamil film ''[[Vishwa Thulasi]]'' (2005).<ref>IMDb.com. Undated. [http://imdb.com/Sections/Awards/WorldFest_Houston/2005 WorldFest Houston: 2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502210351/http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/WorldFest_Houston/2005 |date=2 May 2008 }}. Accessed 25 November 2008.</ref>

[[A. R. Rahman]] rose to fame from the [[Tamil cinema|Kollywood]] film industry to become one of the most popular international music directors and has had a musical''[[Bombay Dreams]]'', playing in London and New York, and scored several projects outside India. He has won two Academy awards and two Grammy awards, even numerous international awards and accolades. The song "[[Chaiyya Chaiyya]]", originally composed by A. R. Rahman for ''[[Dil Se..]]'' (1998), has also been well received around the world, making several top 10 world music lists and has even been featured in several American movies. The song was in both the opening scene and credits of [[Spike Lee]]'s ''[[Inside Man]]''. Rahman's earlier [[Roja (soundtrack)|soundtrack for ''Roja'']] (1991) was included in [[Time's All-Time 100 Movies|''Time''{{'s}} 10 Best Soundtracks]] of all time in 2005. He has been regarded as the only composer from [[India]] to attain massive popularity and fame in the international arena.<ref name="Timetop10s">{{cite news | author=Corliss, Richard| title=Best Soundtracks - All Time 100 Movies | magazine= Time | url=http://www.time.com/time/2005/100movies/0,23220,soundtracks,00.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050524015339/http://www.time.com/time/2005/100movies/0,23220,soundtracks,00.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=24 May 2005 | access-date=24 February 2008 | date=12 February 2005}}</ref><ref name="Timesecrets100">{{cite magazine| author=Corliss, Richard| title=That Old Feeling - Secrets of the All-Time 100 | magazine=Time | url=http://aolsvc.timeforkids.kol.aol.com/time/columnist/corliss/article/0,9565,1068026-3,00.html| date=2 June 2005| access-date=24 February 2008| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216083853/http://aolsvc.timeforkids.kol.aol.com/time/columnist/corliss/article/0,9565,1068026-3,00.html| archive-date=16 February 2009| url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=Time>{{cite magazine|title='All-Time' 100 Movies|magazine=Time|url=http://www.time.com/time/2005/100movies|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050524004942/http://www.time.com/time/2005/100movies/|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 May 2005|access-date=25 February 2009|date=12 February 2005}}</ref> Hindi filmi music has reached an even wider global audience due to the success of the [[Slumdog Millionaire (soundtrack)|''Slumdog Millionaire'' soundtrack]], also composed by Rahman. Singaporean-Indian singer [[Priyadarshini (singer)|Priyadarshini]] is regarded as the first Indian playback singer to carry out Ph.D.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|last=Mary|first=S. B. Vijaya|date=24 September 2021|title=Singer Priyadarshini documents 100 years of film music|language=en-IN|work=The Hindu|url=https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/music/playback-singer-priyadarshini-documents-100-years-of-film-music/article36647462.ece|access-date=2 October 2021|issn=0971-751X|archive-date=5 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211005075340/https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/music/playback-singer-priyadarshini-documents-100-years-of-film-music/article36647462.ece|url-status=live}}</ref> research in film music and document 100 years of music in Tamil cinema and 90 years in Kannada cinema<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|date=9 September 2021|title=101st convocation of University of Mysore! Priyadarshini first Indian playback singer to receive PhD|url=https://www.mysoorunews.com/101st-convocation-of-university-of-mysore-priyadarshini-first-indian-playback-singer-to-receive-phd/|access-date=2 October 2021|website=Mysooru News|language=en-US|archive-date=18 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210918004934/https://www.mysoorunews.com/101st-convocation-of-university-of-mysore-priyadarshini-first-indian-playback-singer-to-receive-phd/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=17 September 2021|title=Priyadarshini becomes the first playback singer to receive Ph.D|url=https://starofmysore.com/priyadarshini-becomes-the-first-playback-singer-to-receive-ph-d/|access-date=2 October 2021|website=Star of Mysore|language=en-US|archive-date=1 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211001004844/https://starofmysore.com/priyadarshini-becomes-the-first-playback-singer-to-receive-ph-d/|url-status=live}}</ref>

The first domain name ever registered related to filmi music and Indian entertainment media was indiamusic.com. The site further put filmi music on the map. Thereafter followed a flood of Indian and filmi music sites.

==See also==
* [[Hindi cinema]]
* [[Cinema of India]]
* [[Filmi qawwali]]
* [[List of Indian film music directors]]
* [[Hindi film music]]
* [[Playback singer]]
* [[Tamil cinema]]
* [[Telugu cinema]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Pop music}}

[[Category:Filmi| ]]
[[Category:Indian styles of music]]
[[Category:Popular music]]