Topic: The effects of globalisation on Indian classical music
Growing up listening to The Beatles, music has always played an important role in my life. One constant thing I remember is not appreciating slow, older Hindi songs as much as I appreciated the more upbeat songs of the west that were being played constantly on the radio. I was in awe of these hip hop beats, and my young and innocent mind was quick to brush away my home's classical music as 'boring'. Only now that I'm older, do I realise that it's the substance that truly matters, and like every other thing of beauty, a song too, should have a soul. Unfortunately, even though I may have broadened my view of music, the western industry continues to bear a shadow over the Indian music industry, and this is largely the result of globalisation.
The phenomenon of globalisation has an important role to play all over the world and has left its footprints across the globe. The intertwining of world views and ideas has resulted in a major transformation of the lifestyles and standards of living of people not only in India, but everywhere. Deep rooted traditions and customs of Indian culture have resulted in a relatively lax grip on our minds with the rising of globalisation. India, as the global community knows, has a rich cultural background, and we pride ourselves on it. Globalisation has not only inculcated westernisation in India, but has opened up the doors to let the world experience the beauty of our nation. Nevertheless, the inherent cultures of any area with a boundary hold a certain weight with respect to its singularity, which is the factor that sets a population within a geographic boundary apart from the other. This uniqueness has been disturbed to various degrees in lieu of globalisation. Such an impact is further pronounced when it reaches a still developing country like India.
Cultural globalisation refers to the transmission of values, ideas, cultural and artistic expressions. In the age of the Internet and fast communications people can interact easier. Multiculturalism and cosmopolitanism are, to a certain extent, nothing but manifestations of cultural globalisation. Communities are less insulated than ever, and even those who cannot travel physically have a good understanding of other cultures and meet people virtually from other parts of the world. People change their views and lifestyles influenced by global cultural trends.
Cultural globalisation provides the global community with various benefits such as access to new cultural values which provides a better understanding of foreign attitudes and reduces stereotypes and misconceptions about communities. It gives the capacity to communicate and defend ideas and allows instant access to information from all around the world. This way, global cultural trends
are also adapted to the local environment. On the other hand, globalisation can lead to cultural homogenisation and some small cultures may lose their distinct features in the rapid spread of commodity based consumer culture. Such changes are especially visible in the Indian classical music industry.
Other than in academic discussions, performing arts in India are today referred to as being part of the “entertainment industry.” Although this seems relatively harmless, the repetition of the term and its simple acceptance in most circles indicates a degree of change in the manner in which the arts are viewed by the society. The fact that today, the arts must entertain and amuse in the manner of showbiz is the message conveyed by this shift. For creators and artists who create art driven by a surge of inspiration or by that creative charge that propels them towards their respective forms of expression, this shift into being disregarded has had a far-reaching impact.
Classical Indian music has also faced such a shift and has, in a way, been transformed over a period of time. While one half of the argument suggests that this shift is harmful to the art, eminent musicians have greeted it with arms wide open.
Globalisation works both ways, and while India was influenced by the world around us, the world in turn, had its own fare share of what India had to offer. The awareness for Indian art music and philosophy grew as pioneers like Pt. Ravi Shankar, Ustad Alla Rakha and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan moved to the West in the late 1960‟s to play in major festivals and teach in establishing schools in various parts of USA and Europe. Ravi Shankar was a man who brought in what we call World music. The Beatles’ member, George Harrison describes him as "The Godfather of World Music‟. He introduced the magic of sitar and Indian classical music to the Western music and revolutionised the way world perceives music today . He was truly one of those people who have inched the gap between the western and the Indian classical music closer with their work.
Two distinguished performing artistes, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma (sarod) and Ustaad Zakir Hussain (tabla), who often perform abroad have greeted globalisation happily. Pandit Sharma reiterated the fact that Indian music had been subject to constant and continuing change over the past millennium. Indian classical music, he said, had gone global even even before globalisation came in. "The interaction with the music of other countries had produced fusion. This cannot, by any stretch of imagination, be called dilution of our music. The artiste has every right to assimilate change, without losing his firm grip on the ground", Zakir Hussain said, firmly keeping his stance that Indian classical music would always remain that way. He added that it was Amir Khusro who started the concept of globalisation with his development of khayal out of Dhrupad. Ali Akbar, Bade Ghulam Ali and Ravi Shankar have all changed Indian music, and had been successful in making us accept such changes. Today’s musicians, he said, were fully aware of what they were capable of, going on to say that Pandit Shiv Sharma had brought the santoor out of obscurity and made it into one of the premier Indian instruments. "Change is inevitable", Zakir Hussain added, "but it is for us to decide what we are going to do with globalisation."
These artists have created several successful fusion tracks where classical music has been blended with the modern western style of sound.
However, there are two sides to every coin, and many argue that globalisation has corroded the essence of classical music, turning it into something more upbeat that'll sell faster to the increasingly demanding market. As a result of this, classical music has been edged towards extinction as songs take form of Bollywood music.
A rationale for this could be accredited to the ability of the Hindi film song to fit into the format or template which is at a common ground with the global music industry. A three to five-minute song template with catchy tunes and rhythmic beats, along with music videos featuring Bollywood stars, is easily marketed into the global music community. Its reduced length allows for easy downloading, standardised pricing, and its popularity and demand in a country of high population such as India holds it up for the prospects of globalisation. This means to say, songs that fit into this format are more likely to have a greater demand and thus achieve one of the primary targets of globalisation, namely that of increasing material wealth. Other genres like remixes, electronic music, hip hop and Indian pop music and fusion music also adhere to similar templates and thus find favour in a globalised world.
Personally, I find that overall, globalisation has taken more away from the Indian music industry than it has added to it. Newer generations have begun to disregard classical music and turn their heads to Top Charts of the western world. Gone are the days of ghazals, with Electronic Dance Music pulling itself closer and closer to world domination. The shayiri that once held its audiences in rapture is now considered "too slow", with very few people willing to look into the meaning of the lyrics. Apart from this, we now find that the masses largely regard Bollywood music and Indian music as the same thing. In comparison to the great countries that we stand with, our nation is young, and it's people still have a great deal to learn about its heritage.
The only way to remedy the decay in the peoples' love for classical music, is to reintroduce it to the public, staying true to its essence while presenting it in a modern light. Fusion artists are struggling to be discovered and find an audience, and must be provided a platform to do so. Coke Studio provides an excellent opportunity for these artists, and similar initiatives would reap great benefits. Artists like Shankar Tucker, who have previously worked with Coke Studio must be further nurtured towards a global stage and a global market. The crippling effect of cosmopolitanism on classical music must be combated by using globalisation in favour of the declining arts, engaging the use of social media to boost its reach to people worldwide.
Indian classical music, just like all the other art forms that came to life from the soil that we stand on, will always have a special place in our history. It is up to us to ensure its place in our future as well. The only way this can be done is by having an open heart, by knowing where we come from, and knowing that our need to take pride in India's gifts is far greater than the need to keep up with the melodies of the outside world. As Anjad Ali Khan once said, "There is no essentials difference between classical and popular music. Music is music." Let this thought be one among many that take us to a future where our symphonies not only change with passing times, but also pay due reverence to the harmonies of the past.