Those of us who were born in the era prior to or in the 80's and 90's wouldn't find it easy to skip or ignore the word Indipop as it comes to our minds.Yes,this is a tribute to Indipop,the genre of music which captivated our hearts and minds during the late 80's until the late 90's or early 2000's until Bollywood hits took over.
Now Indipop itself is quite vast and I don't know where to begin with it.In fact I would consider it akin to the television ads of this era which would bring a smile to our face if we happen to remember them. These videos used to give a very other worldly or utopian kind of feel.To sum up,we all remember artists be it,Alisha Chinai,Lucky Ali,Daler Mehndi, Baba Sehgal,Suneeta Rao,Falguni Pathak,Anaida,Mehnaz to Shweta Shetty, Raageshwari,Shaan,Colonial Cousins, Adnan Sami, Shiamak Davar(since he has released his music album during this period), just to name a few.Also,some of the actors who made prominent appearances in Indipop music videos such as Milind Soman,Jas Arora(famous for the track Gur Nalon Ishq Mitha opposite Malaika Arora Khan),Ruby Bhatia,Riya Sen,etc or Asha Bhosle who featured and released her own music album,bring about some striking or cherished memories if we even remotely come across glimpses of these videos or songs,specially on YouTube.
I have vivid memories of listening to Baba Sehgal's tracks which used to come quite often on MTV & other TV channels when it had just launched in the early 90's. Running on parallel lines,Sagarika with her remake of Nazia Hassan's Disco Deewane was quite a hit and could be heard in many homes across the neighbourhood.Besides,Shweta Shetty's Johnny Johnny Joker also dominated the charts.Both were favourite party hits.
Alisha Chinai,with her superhit music album Made in India in 1995,literally ruled the roost for long,with the superhit title track,which was quite popular throughout the country and was even played during the opening ceremony of Wills World Cup 1996.Alisha had become a nationwide singing sensation post this music album.
How could one forget Lucky Ali with his chartbuster O Sanam from the album Sunoh,which gained monumental popularity among the masses.
Daler Mehndi was instrumental in popularizing Punjabi Bhangra and Pop across the country and even in other parts of the world.
Besides,Suneeta Rao,Anaida,Mehnaz have each brought out superhits be it, Paree Hoon Main, Oova Oova or Banoongi Mein Miss India respectively for each of the artists.
It was during this time period of the late 90's that Shiamak Davar and Asha Bhosle released their music albums featuring tracks such as Jaane Kisne and Jaanam Samjha Karo,again which needs no description. In 1998,Falguni Pathak rose to prominence with her track Yaad Piya ki Aane lagi featuring Riya Sen and other artists.Falguni had delivered other superhit numbers in the following years,thanks to the success of her debut album.
The Colonial Cousins,featuring singers Hariharan and Leslie Lewis,were a band which became a huge hit and inspiration, particularly for the young generation.
Euphoria,the band featuring the frontman Dr Palash Sen,are considered the pioneers of the Indian pop music wave during the 90's.Besides,the band is also known for their different style and tone of music which is not regular with the other artists,nevertheless gaining immense popularity
Former MTV VJ Raageshwari and actress Suchitra Krishnamurthy also delivered superhits such as Duniya and Dole Dole,which had a great appeal.
There have been numerous other artists who have tried to carve a niche for themselves in the Indipop world and have managed to get through atleast for sometime.Qawwali singer Altaf Raja who needs no introduction as most are aware of the song Tum toh Thehre Pardesi which particularly became popular among the rickshawwallahs and Taxiwallahs of Indian cities,particularly Mumbai >.Adnan Sami,nevertheless stole the show with Bheegi Bheegi Raaton Mein and Lift Karadey gaining notable recognition. Pakistani artists too tried their luck in the Indian Indipop world, such as Haider Ali with the superhit track Purani Jeans or Sajjad Ali with Sohni Lagdi
Coming to the early 2000's, India's first boy band The Band of Boys,released their first music album Yeh Bhi Who Bhi in 2002,This was a welcome change as the Indian youth at that time,including me were well versed with International boy bands. Earlier in the same year,Channel V,through their talent hunt show,Popstars had launched 5 girls into one band named Viva.
There are many other artists throughout the late 80's,90's or early 2000's such as Shankar Mahadevan,with his ever famour music album Breathless,Remo Fernandes,Babul Supriyo,Jojo,Anupama Verma,Models,Aaryans,Sansara,Stereo Nation,,etc which I haven't highlighted.
Overall,this was an era which I would always remember,for bringing about a massive change in the Indian music arena and helped India launch its own pop industry to a young audience,to whom only international music had brought an appeal.
