New Bollywood music making a quiet comeback to top of the charts

Bollywood film music, long struggling to hold its place against independent artists and regional tracks, is staging a comeback.

- Lata Jha

New soundtracks such as Saiyaara and Metro... In Dino are climbing music charts and driving box-office buzz, signaling that Hindi film songs may finally be regaining their lost sheen. Entertainment industry experts say there is growing realisation that soulful tracks that connect with audiences before theatrical release aid not just marketing campaigns but also a film's box office performance.

According to data from the Indian Music Industry (IMI), the apex body representing music labels in India, for the week ending 15 August, six of the top 10 tracks on Spotify and YouTube were film songs. On Amazon Music and JioSaavn, the numbers were even higher—with film tracks making up seven and eight of the top 10 songs respectively. Until a year ago, it was common for only two or three movie songs to feature in the top 10 list.