2021 in charts: Bollywood scored high with Shershaah hits, rivalled by non-film music, Punjabi hip-hop, K-Pop

If you ask an Indian music label exec about the best thing to have happened during what have possibly been the two worst years for the country’s music industry in recent times, they are very likely to say that it is the rise of “non-film” music. Regular readers of this column would know  how non-sensical I think that term is  but as much as suits love it, as the most played tracks of the year across streaming platforms in India (listed below) shows, the biggest hits are still coming from Bollywood films, even those that did not have a theatrical release. In 2021, two songs from the soundtrack of  _Shershaah_ , which was put out on Amazon Prime Video India,  broke the record  for the highest number of streams in a week on Spotify. Both ‘Raataan Lambiyan’ and ‘ _Ranjha_ ’ are now well on the way to securing a place among the platform’s most heard tunes of all time. The other top track of this year, ‘Lut Gaye,’ which was initially released as a standalone single, and then tagged on to the movie  Mumbai Saga  (for which its video was really a promotional tool), is also technically from a Hindi film.

Examining the year-end top 10s of different DSPs, we see that there is a fair amount of difference in their listenership. ‘Raataan Lambiyan’ is the only hit to appear on the lists of as many as seven services:  Apple Music,  Gaana,  Spotify, and  YouTube, which published all-genre surveys, as well as  Hungama Music,  JioSaavn, and  Wynk Music, which shared language-specific charts for all of 2021. I should add here that it is sometimes hard to tell whether these rankings are based on total streams or are just placements on a best-of playlist. Wynk Music, for instance, calls their Hindi compilation ‘Popular Hits: 2021,’ and its  English equivalent the ‘Year End Chart.’ I am leaving out the wrap-ups by Amazon Prime Music and Resso from my analysis because they seem more like playlists than charts. That said, ‘Lut Gaye’ is on all but Apple Music’s top 10, where it is a relatively low No 26. Of course, Apple Music’s overall audience skews towards international music but it also over-indexes on hip-hop. The Canadian Punjabi rap crew of AP Dhillon and company not only has the number one song on the platform with ‘Brown Munde’ but another smash in the top five with ‘Insane.’ ‘Brown Munde’ finished strong on Spotify as well, and I believe it would have been high up on the Indian services too had it not been for Dhillon’s label Run-Up Records’s decision to remove it from desi DSPs, a move that is rumoured to have been prompted by the lack of adequate royalty reports. By December, Dhillon’s popularity had grown enough for him to charge as much as Rs 15,000 for the last-phase tickets of the Mumbai leg of his recent nationwide tour.

This was also a big year for Punjabi hip-hop in general, which seems to be among the few genres whose fans hear complete albums rather than just the break-out hits.

Of the full-length efforts released in 2021, Sidhu Moose Wala’s Moosetape was the most streamed collection on Apple Music while it was behind only Shershaah on  Spotify. The only other set with more plays than Moosetape on both Apple and Spotify was the enduring two-year-old soundtrack to  _Kabir Singh_. While hip-hop heads have an affinity for Apple,  K-Pop  fans fiercely flock towards Spotify, probably because it is the only service apart from YouTube that publishes charts where the streams for each position are displayed, giving ARMY, Blinks, and other fandoms clear record-breaking targets to achieve. The Indian contingent of ARMY has  repeatedly set new peaks  for weekly play counts for a single on Spotify in India. Though ‘ _Butter_ ’ relinquished its crown to ‘Raataan Lambiyan’ in August, BTS was the fourth most streamed act on the platform in 2021, and the only international one in the top 10.

BTS has also been a fixture on  India’s official chart for international music, which was launched in June. The longest-running No 1 on that chart, however, is Nigerian singer Ckay’s ‘Love Nwantiti,’ which has ruled for the past 13 weeks. There is no confirmation on whether the compiler, trade body the Indian Music Industry, will publish a year-end chart, but because it only takes into consideration plays on Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon Prime Music, it does not quite tell us which tracks are crossing over to mass Indian audiences. Looking at the language-specific year-end lists of Indian DSPs, it is clear that Justin Bieber is the biggest international act in India. He was the most heard non-Indian-origin artist on Apple Music,  Gaana, and  JioSaavn while his singles ‘Stay’ with The Kid LAROI and ‘Peaches,’ featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon, were the top two English songs of the year on Apple Music,  Hungama Music and Wynk Music as well as on JioSaavn, where the order was switched. As for the much-touted rise of “non-film” music, it rained monsoon-inspired hits this year. Riding the wave were major label releases such as Universal Music’s ‘Baarish Ban Jaana’ and ‘Baarish Ki Jaaye,’ and if we are to stretch the theme a bit, Saregama’s ‘ _Paani Paani_ .’ Also benefitting from this deluge was ‘Baarishein,’ a three-year-old cut by singer-songwriter Anuv Jain who joined the likes of Ritviz to become one of the rare independent artists whose singles break through on to the all-genre top 100s of Apple Music and Spotify. But it was Hindi rapper King who caught the ears of non-indie listeners in a big way with his ballad ‘Tu Aake Dekhle,’ which ended up in Spotify’s top tier for 2021.

Apart from Punjabi tunes, regional Indian language music is notably absent from most year-end surveys except for that of YouTube where it over-indexes. If Haryanvi was the fastest growing language in 2020, this time around, Bhojpuri became the buzz word for major labels, some of whom made  Bhojpuri  versions of Hindi hits. YouTube’s most streamed videos included those Bhojpuri, Telugu, and Tamil, the last of which was represented through ‘Enjoy Enjaami,’ a release whose  lop-sided promotions  attracted controversy. It was one of several smashes to have been boosted by short video sharing apps over the past 12 months. Among them was a rare Sinhala song to go viral in India, Chamath Sangeeth, Yohani, and Satheeshan’s ‘Manike Mage Hithe.’ Oddly, it was deemed ineligible for the IMI’s International Top 20 Singles chart, for which songs in  non-Indian languages qualify. The reason for this, they informed me, is Sinhala’s “proximity to a few Indian languages,” and the fact “India has a small population of Sinhala-speaking individuals.” Like every year, I wish 2022 finally sees the launch of an all-genre Indian chart based on plays on all the major DSPs operating here. I am also waiting to see if an English-language release by an Indian act makes IMI’s international survey, in what I am hoping and praying is a better, brighter year, not just for the music industry but for each and every one of us. Top songs of 2021 Apple Music India

1. ’Brown Munde,’ AP Dhillon, Gurinder Gill, Shinda Kahlon, and Gminxr, Run-Up Records (Punjabi hip-hop)
2. ’Ranjha’ (from Shershaah), Jasleen Royal, B Praak, Romy, and Anvita Dutt, Sony Music (Bollywood)  
3. ’Blinding Lights,’ The Weeknd (International)*
4. ’Aabaad Barbaad’ (from Ludo), Pritam, Arijit Singh, and Sandeep Srivastava, T-Series (Bollywood)
5. ’Insane,’ AP Dhillon, Gurinder Gill, Shinda Kahlon, and Gminxr, Run-Up Records (Punjabi hip-hop)
6. ’Stay,’ The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber, Sony Music (International)
7. ’Peaches,’ Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon, Universal Music (International)
8. ’Levitating,’ Dua Lipa featuring DaBaby, Warner Music (International)
9. ’Raataan Lambiyan’ (from Shershaah), Tanishk Bagchi, Jubin Nautiyal, and Asees Kaur, Sony Music (Bollywood)
10. ’Ghungroo’ (from War), Vishal-Shekhar, Arijit Singh, Shilpa Rao, and Kumaar, Yash Raj Music (Bollywood)**

*No 4 in 2020   **No 1 in 2020 Gaana

1. ’Lut Gaye’ (from Mumbai Saga), Tanishk Bagchi, Nusrat Fateh Ali Kha, Jubin Nautiyal, and Manoj Muntashir, T-Series (Bollywood)
2. ’Bewafa Tera Masoom Chehra,’ Rochak Kohli, Jubin Nautiyal, and Rashmi Virag, T-Series (Hindi pop)
3. ’Raataan Lambiyan’ (from Shershaah), Tanishk Bagchi, Jubin Nautiyal, and Asees Kaur, Sony Music (Bollywood)
4. ’Taaron Ka Shehar,’ Jaani, Neha Kakkar, and Jubin Nautiyal, T-Series (Hindi pop)  
5. ’Temporary Pyar,’ Kaka featuring Adaab Kharoud, Gaana Originals/Single Track Studios (Punjabi pop)
6. ’Baarish Ban Jaana,’ Payal Dev, Stebin Bein, and Kunaal Vermaa, VYRL Originals/Universal Music (Hindi pop)
7. ’Illegal Weapon 2.0’ (from Street Dancer 3D), Garry Sandhu, Jasmine Sandlas, Tanishk Bagchi, and Priya Saraiya, T-Series (Bollywood)
8. ’Titliaan,’ Afsana Khan, Avvy Sara, and Jaani, Desi Melodies/Universal Music (Punjabi pop)  
9. ’Baarish Ki Jaaye,’ B Praak and Jaani, Desi Melodies/Universal Music (Hindi pop)
10. ’Libaas,’ Kaka, Single Track Studios (Punjabi pop)

Spotify India

1. ’Raataan Lambiyan’ (from Shershaah), Tanishk Bagchi, Jubin Nautiyal, and Asees Kaur, Sony Music (Bollywood)
2. ’Ranjha’ (from Shershaah), Jasleen Royal, B Praak, Romy, and Anvita Dutt, Sony Music (Bollywood)
3. ’Brown Munde,’ AP Dhillon, Gurinder Gill, Shinda Kahlon, and Gminxr, Run-Up Records (Punjabi hip-hop)
4. ’Stay,’ The Kid LAROI and Justin Bieber, Sony Music (International)
5. ’Lut Gaye’ (from Mumbai Saga), Tanishk Bagchi, Nusrat Fateh Ali Kha, Jubin Nautiyal, and Manoj Muntashir, T-Series (Bollywood)
6. ’Butter,’ BTS, Big Hit/Sony Music (International)
7. ’Agar Tum Saath Ho’ (from Tamasha), AR Rahman, Alka Yagnik, Arijit Singh, and Irshad Kamil, T-Series (Bollywood)
8. ’Tu Aake Dehkle,’ King, Kingsclan Records (Hindi hip-hop/pop)
9. ’Shayad’ (from Love Aaj Kal 2020), Pritam, Arijit Singh, and Irshad Kamil, Sony Music (International)***
10. ’Montero’ (Call Me By Your Name)”, Lil Nas X, Sony Music (International)  

***No.1 in 2020 YouTube India

1. ’Lut Gaye’ (from Mumbai Saga), Tanishk Bagchi, Nusrat Fateh Ali Kha, Jubin Nautiyal, and Manoj Muntashir, T-Series (Bollywood)
2. ’Kunware Me Ganga Nahaile Bani,’ Ankush Raja, Shilpi Raj, Arya Sharma, Boss Rampuri, and Manish Rohtasi (Bhojpuri pop)
3. ’Paani Paani,’ Badshah and Aastha Gill, Saregama (Hindi pop)
4. ’Baarish Ki Jaaye,’ B Praak and Jaani, Desi Melodies/Universal Music (Hindi pop)
5. ’Saiyaan Ji,’ Neha Kakkar, Lil Golu and Hommie Dilliwala, T-Series (Hindi pop)  
6. ’Saranga Dariya’ (from Love Story), Pawan CH, Mangli and Suddala Ashok Teja, Aditya Music (Tollywood)
7. ’Nadi Biche Naiya Dole,’ Shilpi Raj, Arya Sharma, and Vijay Chauhan, VR Music (Bhojpuri pop)
8. ’Baarish Ban Jaana,’ Payal Dev, Stebin Bein and Kunaal Vermaa, VYRL Originals/Universal Music (Hindi pop)
9. ’Enjoy Enjaami,’ Santhosh Narayanan and Dhee featuring Arivu, maajja (Tamil hip-hop/pop)
10. ’Raataan Lambiyan’ (from Shershaah), Tanishk Bagchi, Jubin Nautiyal, and Asees Kaur, Sony Music (Bollywood)

Amit Gurbaxani is a Mumbai-based journalist who has been writing about music, specifically the country’s independent scene, for nearly two decades. He tweets  @TheGroovebox.