I have recently discovered an appreciation for Hindi/Indian pop music. There are several radio stations in Sydney that play it, but they do so only on some days, and the announcers speak Hindi more than English, so I don’t know the artists. My Indian friends tell me some stuff about it, but it is only about their favourites, and not necessarily what I like.
Anyway, some of this stuff is great! I don’t know what I’m listening to most of the time, but I like it. Some of it is pretty average too, of course.
Any suggestions on what to seek out?
Possibly more a CS thread on reflection. If the mods would oblige…
What do you like?
If you’re looking for classical, Ravi Shakar is a good choice.
If you’re looking for pop, I recommend film songs, except there’s a drastic difference between film songs of today & of yesteryear.
Listen, my e-mail’s in my profile. E-mail me, and maybe we can work out a way to have you listen to a couple of songs so you can get an idea. Without an idea of what you like though, it’s very hard, because Indians write even more songs than Americans!
Hindi pop / techno / etc. This is weird for me because with Western music I don’t like that sort of stuff. But the Hindi music I like is fast, happy, contemporary and upbeat. I’ll be bothering your inbox shortly, Anaamika. Thanks. 
primly That sounds rather lewd.*
Sure, I’ll look for your e-mail.
As I hit “send” I thought it sounded lewd too, but then I was worrying too much and nobody should notice.
oo-er missus I forgot you wuz Dopers. 
You should try the Lagaan and Monsoon Wedding soundtrack-readily available and very hummable.
If Punjabi is okay too I picked up a very nice Banghra compilation on the Naxos label.
Follow this link and click on Bhangra Beatz under India/Uk. They have soundclips too.
Just an idea but try the BBC Asian Network . Depends what time of day you listen as to the talk : music ratios but the link language is English so you’d know what was being played…
(Music aside it is very interesting today given the news about the presumed identities of the London Bombers.)
TheLoadedDog, could you post a list of what you learn from Anaamika? I’m really insterested in this type of music, too.
So far, my fav is the kind of stuff that was playing during the wedding scene in Bend it Like Beckham.
Thanks so much!
Oh, sorry! Here’s a copy of what I sent LoadedDog. Very basic, I’ll get into more detail if he (or anyone else) wants.
*Do you have an iTunes subscription? 'Cause you can listen to snippets of some Indian music on there.
Punjabi Bhangra is very lively.
Movie songs are great. Some of my favorite movie albums are:
Hum Aapke Hain Kaun
Dilwale Dulhaniya LeJayenge
Namak Halaal
(these are names of the movies, and the names under which they sell by. A great song from Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, for example, is Maye Ni Maye - Lata Mangeshkar. My Chinese boyfriend loves the song Joote Dedo - very lively).
Monsoon Wedding is a good mix for work. In the car, though, I like strong techno or bass, hence the Bhangra.
Also, if you like female vocalists, you can try:
Lata Mangeshkar
Asha Bhosle
The best male vocalist is:
Kishore Kumar
And I am a sucker for Indian flute music…personally, I think nothing else sounds the same. *
Please remember, this is all IMO!
I don’t know most of the titles of the Hindi and Tamil songs I’ve heard but I think one of the best soundtracks is the one for the Tamil movie Bombay. I think the movie was also dubbed in Hindi and the songs are available in both Hindi and Tamil.
Stream the songs here: http://www.raaga.com/channels/hindi/movie/H000270.html
Find English translations here: http://www.bollywhat.com/lyrics/bomb_lyr.html
Do listen to Tu Hi Re, the gorgeous ballad, while reading the translation. I was lucky that the first time I heard the song, it was while watching the movie, so the song had greater impact.
Thank you, Anaamika and Visions of Love!