National Award-winning singer Abhay Jodhpurkar has sung for AR Rahman and Ajay-Atul across Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Marathi. Now he is speaking up about what he sees as a shift in mainstream Hindi film music: commercial decision-making is crowding out craft.
His warning lands at a time when streaming charts, reels and playlists increasingly decide which songs get pushed. For Jodhpurkar, that pressure has moved from marketing into the recording room itself.
Who is making the creative calls?
In a new interview, Jodhpurkar argued that the Hindi film industry has become a victim of capitalism. His concern is not that music is a business, but that business thinking now reaches into the studio. “Art is not supposed to be dealt with corporate mindset,” he said.
He described composers being expected to churn out numbers while producers and labels make creative decisions. When quantity becomes the only target, he warned, quality will be compromised.
Even Rahman does not get full liberty
The singer used his mentor AR Rahman to sharpen the point. According to Jodhpurkar, even Rahman is not given full liberty to make decisions in Hindi film music. If a composer of that stature faces limits, a young composer with talent has little chance of being respected.
Jodhpurkar added that Rahman tried to launch him in Hindi multiple times, but no director or producer was willing to risk their songs on a new name, especially one from the South.
What the audience loses
This is not only an artist’s grievance; it shapes what fans hear. When labels and producers play safe, the result is formula-driven tracks, fewer original voices, and a chart that rewards familiarity over craft.
- Composers are being measured by output, not artistry.
- New singers, particularly from outside the Hindi belt, struggle to get a first break.
- Listeners are left with fewer genuinely original songs to choose from.
Respect craft, not just commercial success
Jodhpurkar’s larger plea is for artists to be respected for their craft rather than their commercial success. He argued that if the industry only promotes what he called trashy material, audiences will have no choice but to consume it.
The fix, in his view, starts with giving composers and singers creative room—and with listeners making space for songs that are not just built to trend. For Bollywood fans, that means looking beyond the top playlist and backing the voices that need a first chance. The lesson is simple: craft should set the brief, and commerce should follow.
Source: The Times of India