In the later years we saw an increasing number of indie punjabi artists who rose to fame with some massively popular songs during the late 1990s and continue to amass an immense fan following. One of the most prominent punjabi singers during the 1980s was Gurdas Maan, a legendary punjabi singer, poet and writer, popularly known for his songs like ‘ Dil Da Mamla Hai ’, which garnered a great amount of national attention with his live performance on DD. And due to this undeniable popularity, it has over time been the base of many independently released songs, most of which have now been incorporated into many Bollywood movies.īut before we delve into the influx of Bollywood with the Punjabi music industry, it’s important to look at the artists over the years who stood out as a proud part of this indie/regional music community and created the atmosphere for more artists to rise in a similar manner. This form of punjabi music, which originated when farmers celebrated a good harvest, separates itself from most other regional music primarily due to its ability to make anyone get on their feet and dance. The most popular form of Punjabi music which has captivated people world over is Bhangra.
Punjab is known to host some culturally vivacious events like Lohri, Baisakhi, Karva Chauth, Basant Panchmi and others, and these events have been a significant source for peppy, up-beat songs created by many punjabi folk artists. With more and more mainstream Bollywood movies adapting punjabi songs, this industry has stayed attached to its roots and still continues to be one of the biggest incubators for the indie music scene in India. This industry grew from classical folk punjabi songs – rich in tradition, where singers and poets wrote ballads in the form of folk music, into the million dollar industry it currently is. Punjabi music is one the most popular genres of music not just in India, but world over.