Tanishk Bagchi is a music producer, composer, singer and lyricist in Hindi films. He is known for tracks like Vaaste, Bolna, Ve Maahi, Aankh Maarey (recreated), Dilbar (recreated), Jehda Nasha (recreated) and Lut Gaye (recreated). In an exclusive interview with Bollywood Bubble, Tanishk Bagchi reveals if artists benefit from the music they have created.
Tanishk Bagchi Reveals The Truth About Musicians In The Industry
When asked if musicians get any monetary benefit from the compositions they create, Tanishk Bagchi said, “Bahut lamba main bata raha hoon na…matlab musicians toh last mein aate hai, lekin yahaan toh usi ki basis pe ek film ka public song agar hit hua na, toh log sochenge ki gaana hit hai matlab yeh Arijit Singh ka gaana hai, yeh Jubin Nautiyal ka hai, yeh Pritam ne compose kiya hai, yeh Tanishk Bagchi ka composition hai. Pehle singer, usse bhi pehle obviously actors aate hain, kyunki jab gaana suna jaata hai toh visuals ke saath hota hai, phir filter hota hai sab kuch… par please, writer ka toh kisi ko pata hi nahi hota.”
(I’m talking at length, right? Musicians come last in the hierarchy. But here, if a film’s song becomes a public hit, people assume it’s because of Arijit Singh, or they’ll say it’s a Jubin Nautiyal song, or that Pritam composed it, or that it’s a Tanishk Bagchi track. First comes the singer, and before that, obviously, the actors—because when people hear a song, it’s usually with the visuals. Everything gets filtered through them. But honestly, no one knows who the lyricist is.)
Continuing, he said, “Sayeed Quadri ne itne gaane kiye hain, Kausar Munir ne kitne lyrics likhe hain — lekin logon ko unka naam hi nahi pata. Jab main logon ke paas jaata hoon aur bolta hoon ki ‘I want to work with Kausar,’ toh kuch log jinhe pata hota hai bolte hain, ‘Arey, I really want to too.’ Par jo nahi jaante woh bolte hain, ‘Can you tell me what song she has done?’ Toh main unhe bataata hoon. Aapko pata hai, unhone yeh gaana likha hai, Irshad Kamil ne yeh kiya hai, ‘Tune Maari Entry’ unka hai, ‘Galliyan’, ‘Tera Ban Jaunga’ — yeh sab unke likhe hue hain. ‘But that’s the problem. Jab main Irshad bhai se baat karta hoon aaj bhi, he’s happy with everything, but I still tell him,’ Sir, people don’t know.’ Ek banda jo zindagi bhar kaam kare, usko PR ke baare mein hi nahi pata.”
(Sayeed Quadri has written so many songs, Kausar Munir has penned countless lyrics—yet people don’t even know their names. When I go to someone and say, ‘I want to work with Kausar,’ those who are aware say, ‘Oh, I really want to as well.’ But those who don’t know say, ‘Can you tell me what songs she’s done?’ So I tell them — Do you know she wrote this song, Irshad Kamil wrote that one, ‘Tune Maari Entry’, ‘Galliyan’, ‘Tera Ban Jaunga’, these were all written by them. But that’s the problem. Even when I talk to Irshad bhai now, he’s happy with everything, but I still tell him, ‘Sir, people just don’t know.’ A person who’s worked their whole life doesn’t even know how PR works.)
Tanishk Bagchi On PR Culture
Adding further,“Ab wo try kar rahe hain samajhne ki PR hota kya hai. Par main bolta hoon ki yeh zarurat bhi nahi honi chahiye. Yeh toh company ko khud karna chahiye. Agar film launch ho rahi hai, toh they should call the musicians on stage. Even if I do a solo film, you won’t even remember my name there. Aur wo bhi kya hai — ek chhota sa naam bhi nahi daalte. Unke paas itni bhi jagah nahi hoti ki ek lyricist ka naam poster pe daal dein. Toh yeh unfair hai. Lekin hum log phir bhi kaam karte rehte hain. Kyunki ab main kiske saath ladunga? Agar fight karne jaaunga toh mera kaam hi chala jaayega. Jo mil raha hai wo bhi nahi milega. Log bolenge, ‘Yeh toh badnaam karta hai.’”
(Now he’s trying to understand what PR is. But I feel he shouldn’t even need to. The company should handle that. If a film is launching, they should call the musicians on stage. Even if I do a solo film, people won’t remember my name. And what’s worse, they won’t even include a tiny name credit. They don’t even have space to put a lyricist’s name on the poster. That’s unfair. Still, we keep working. Because who do I fight with? If I start fighting, I’ll lose the work I already have. Whatever I’m getting now, I won’t get that either. People will say, ‘Oh, he badmouths others.’)
He concluded, “But fact yahi hai — hum log bahut mehnat karte hain films ke liye, lekin humein uska credit nahi milta. Har baar firse kaam karna padta hai apna naam banane ke liye. Main abhi tak itne gaane kar chuka hoon ki khud hisaab nahi rakh sakta. Matlab 20-30, billion views hai. Itna toh Ed Sheeran ke paas bhi nahi hai jitna maine kiya hai pichhle paanch saal mein. Par main kahaan hoon, aur Ed Sheeran kahaan hai? Yahi toh problem hai — yahaan milta hi nahi hai.”
(But the fact is, we work hard for films, and yet we don’t get the credit. Every time, we have to start from scratch to build our name again. I’ve written so many songs by now that I’ve lost count. I mean 20, 30 billion views — that kind of reach. Even Ed Sheeran doesn’t have the numbers I’ve clocked in the last five years. But where am I, and where is Ed Sheeran? That’s the problem — recognition just doesn’t come here.)
Watch The Full Interview
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