Music Beyond Lines

Music is one fragment of our social life that is able to trascend boundaries, cultures, languages and races. Music has no nationality and no distinctive characteristics. Musical notes never discriminate between the ears of the poor and the rich, the old and the young, male and female. Mellifluous sounds shower equal bliss on all, sans disparity and bias.
Recently, I witnessed a talent hunt show which was searching for India's best rock band. The band that eventually emerged the winner was nowhere near to what Indian music is about. The band was more on par with the Western rock bands which still find it hard to make a mark in this country of 107 crore. The band is more about international sounds- hard rock, heavy metal, alternative rock and electronica. As good as the band maybe, they do not conform with the image that the global audience has about Indian Music. Even a dumb person can feel the pulse of the global audience by just listening to Steven Tyler of Aerosmith talking about Indian Rock scene. His reaction was that "Indian Rock music is very colorful". And yet, this supposedly best rock band of India is nowhere near to Steven Tyler's expectations.
The emergence of myriads of hard rock and heavy metals bands in India suggests that the sounds which please the Indian ears are changing. It is not out of will that the music produced by bands and even by music directors in Bollywood movies is changing, but it is the sheer competition with the Western artists which has forced them to adopt to the global scenario. the youth of India, like the youth of most other nations, wishes to experience the rush of adrenaline in their veins and one of the ways to do it is to head-bang to hard rock music. Not just hard-rock, even hip-hop has made a large audience base in India with the likes of Justin Timberlake, Nelly Furtado and Timbaland becoming major youth icons. Gradually, Indian music is changing to conform with global benchmarks and acceptance.
On the other hand, a totally different genre of music has developed just across the border in Pakistan. The rock bands from Pakistan stuck to originality and creativity to produce a music that bears Sufi notes, Urdu lyrics and the feeling of rock. This genre eventually came to be known as Sufi Rock or Pakistani Rock. Bands like Junoon, Jal and Strings made a major impact on the music scenario across Asia, if not the world, with their songs. With their success, a whole new breed of bands emerged in the city of lights, Karachi. The music produced there is in total contrast to what Indian Rock Music is about. Sometimes, it is hard to imagine that such distinct genres of music can emerge contemporarily in neighbouring countries. Perhaps this is the difference of mentality. Pakistanis are more adamant about sticking to their roots while Indians still follow the colonial approach of "the West is always right".