Gone are the days of melodies that defined Bollywood as a ground of diverse music. From Jiya Jale, Chaiyya Chaiyya, Dola Re Dola to Ye Jo Des Hai Tera and many more, there was a time when the music of Bollywood used to bring in the culture and language from different corners of India.
With the release of thousands of films a year, along with the storyline the music has also depleted in its quality. Catering to a mass appeal most music producers seem to cling to the money making policy rather than exploring music as a pursuit of excellence. Remixes spoil old classics and have a blood-boiling effect on music lovers. Punjabification is a result of excessively drawing from the Punjabi music industry and using bass boosted, similar sounding and overtly groovy beats all the time. It erases the authenticity of Punjabi music that has a great appeal to the listeners but makes a distorted version to fit in the Bollywood genre. They are serving us boring repetitive beats in the name of Punjabi music!
A recent backlash to the remix of Mere Mehboob Mere Sanam in Bad Newz took social media by storm where fans started complaining about spoiling such a legendary song. Some stated the excessive beats are tortuous to the ears and others highlighted how Bollywood has become a place of cheap remixes. It is to be noted that there was a time when Punjabi beats and lyrics certainly had a newness to it. But they have been overused and have become so standardised that nothing entertaining remains in them. All of these songs sound the same these days!
Here are some reactions online:
The Punjabification of Bollywood has significantly altered the essence of its music. While it has given us some catchy tunes and memorable hits, the trend has now spilled over into storytelling, often at the cost of originality and depth. It’s frustrating to witness stories… pic.twitter.com/nrLCeLnBtO
— The Cinéprism (@TheCineprism) July 19, 2024
This is what we have lost in the process of Punjabi-fication of Bollywood Music. pic.twitter.com/MLpDveTT0H
— Utkarsh Gupta (@PaneerMakkhani) July 14, 2024
Nope, nuh uh. Punjabi-fication would mean the original punjabi songs are safe from this madness masquerading as music nowadays. The term you’re looking for is Guru Randhawa-fication or better yet, Tseries-ification.
— Kanav Gulati (@thekvgulati) July 15, 2024
Earlier music used to diverse. Bollywood was known for its song and music. Now creators want to cash in by having Punjabi songs in every movie so that it can be featured on instagram reels and parties. We are losing our diversity and originality!!!!
— R.C (@RC___writes) July 19, 2024
