Coke Studio Bharat unveils Ishq Bawla, a Haryanvi echo of identity and introspection
#IshqBawla is a Haryanvi head-nod to love gone sideways, taking notes from centuries of folklore's most dramatic love stories. More than just a song, it's a reflection on the universal experience of heartbreak, reimagined with a contemporary spirit - think of it as your hype track for moving on and leveling up.Haryanvi rapper Dhanda Nyoliwala delivers a compelling performance, weaving relatable narratives with his signature cadence. He's joined by Xvir Grewal, whose melodic interpretation adds another layer of depth to the exploration of love and loss. The production is a vibrant fusion of modern sounds and traditional Haryanvi instrumentation, featuring the distinctive textures of the deru, bugchu, and ghada, creating a sonic landscape that is both familiar and refreshingly new Artist Parveen Dhanda (Dhanda Nyoliwala) brings his signature new-age rap beats and lyrical authenticity to the fore. More than just a rapper, Dhanda stands as a cultural voice, committed to putting Haryana on the global hip-hop map. Harshvir Singh Grewal, aka Xvir, brings a melodic depth and emotional nuance to the track offering a smooth contrast to Dhanda's verses. Together, they craft a dynamic narrative that bridges regional identity and contemporary expression. Drawing strength from their roots, the duo experiments with sound blending traditional folk instruments like the deru, bugchu, and ghada with modern, rap-inspired beats where the result is a vibrant, layered track that feels both grounded and globally relevant.Shantanu Gangane, IMX Lead, Coca-Cola India, said, "Coke Studio Bharat is built on a clear strategic intent: to take the sound of India to the world by spotlighting its most powerful cultural asset - its diversity. With each new song, we're building a stage where regional artists like Dhanda Nyoliwala and Xvir Grewal can reimagine tradition for a new generation of listeners. We at Coke Studio are stoked to bring forward stories that are rooted yet relevant for the fans."
Adding on, Dhanda Nyoliwala said, "Coke Studio Bharat is more than a stage, it has completely transformed how music is perceived. Through Ishq Bawla, we've been able to represent not just the sound, but my roots and my people. The platform gave us the freedom to be honest with our expression and bring Haryana's voice to a wider audience."Xvir Grewal added, "Working on Ishq Bawla with Dhanda Nyoliwala and Coke Studio Bharat allowed me to explore an idea that's both intimate and timeless. The support, creative space, and collaborative mindset helped elevate the song and gave our story a sound that truly speaks to today's generation."As Season 3 of Coke Studio Bharat continues to unfold, it remains a vibrant canvas for India's regional artistry bridging cultural legacies with contemporary sound and creating music that transcends borders. With tracks like Ishq Bawla, the platform reaffirms its commitment to storytelling that is rooted, relevant, and resonant.
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Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
50 years later: Sholay's unstoppable pop culture ride
Sholay has been an important of the country's pop-culture. "Arre o Sambha, kitne remakes, ads, parodies, aur spoof hain?' Too many, Sardar. If you got the reference, you are a Sholay connoisseur; it would be unfair to call you just a fan. The Ramesh Sippy film, which ran for five consecutive years at Mumbai's Minerva Cinema after its release on August 15, 1975, is 50 years old now. Its iconic scenes and quotable dialogues, written by Salim-Javed, are deeply woven into India's pop culture fabric. Whether it is Jai-Veeru's yaarana or Thakur's hands being as deadly as a noose (ye haath nahi phaansi ka fanda hai), Basanti's titter-tatter (Yun ki, ye kaun bola?) or Gabbar's menacing 'Kab hai Holi?', there is a bevy of Sholay moments which TV shows, movies and ads have mined for clever and hilarious callbacks. Soorma Bhopali, Mausi, Kaalia and Sambha are the stuff of folklore. One of Hindi cinema's finest creations has birthed of numerous parodies and homages. Sholay lives on as a meme machine Just like films and ads, memes have borrowed liberally from Sholay, introducing the cult classic to a Gen Z audience that may have never watched it. The most viral of the lot being the iconic 'Yeh haath humein de de Thakur' dilaogue, with meme-makers inventing savage comebacks from Thakur. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like They Were So Beautiful Before; Now Look At Them; Number 10 Will Shock You Reportingly Undo The film's scenes and characters continue to serve as readymade comic strips, adaptable to everything from politics and cricket to heartbreak and Monday blues. Thakur and Gabbar have been the most popular Sholay characters for the memers. The visual grammar of Sholay has also made its way into lifestyle marketing. Several apparel and lifestyle brands have dabbled in Sholay-inspired graphics and slogans. Gabbar T-shirts, Ramgarh road-sign merch, and even pop-up cafés themed around the film have found traction in metros. In 2023, Coca-Cola India launched a limited-edition 'Basanti's Orange' retro can, a tribute to Hema Malini's iconic character, which sold out within days. In the same year, Bharti Airtel's #KitneAadmiThe Reels challenge saw over 12,000 user-generated videos in just 72 hours. Sholay: The marketing gold mine For decades, Sholay has echoed across radio jingles, billboards, TV commercials, and viral videos, celebrated through both loving tributes and tongue-in-cheek parodies. What draws viewers in is the magnetic presence of each protagonist, snappy dialogues, and the film's strikingly vivid sequences, which lyricist Prasoon Joshi once said 'make sense even if pulled out from the film.' Interestingly, while many rank Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) as their favourite character, it's Gabbar, played by Amjad Khan, who dominates the advertising world. 'Arey o Kaalia, gaanv se mere liye kya laaye re?' 'Yeh biscuit laaya hoon, Sardar.' The iconic Glucose-D biscuit ad gave Hindi cinema its first advertising icon – Gabbar Singh , the soft-voiced villain who ended up selling biscuits to children. Ad filmmaker Kailash Surendranath recalls tapping into the Sholay craze and turning Bollywood's most feared villain into a brand ambassador back in 1976. 'From being scary to being the face of a children's brand was really something. Gabbar's popularity contributed to the success of the ad,' he shares. Gabbar's biscuit ad was one of the most popular ads. Sunil Alagh, then Britannia's group product manager, had initial doubts – until his wife convinced him. As per The Economic Times, she told him, 'Children wanted to be Gabbar and not any hero,' adding that kids wouldn't even remember Amitabh, Dharmendra, or Sanjeev Kumar's dialogues. The bigger hurdle was convincing Amjad to appear in the commercial. 'In those days, doing an ad was beneath the dignity of actors... 'We do such big films, why should we do 'sabun-tel ki ad?'' shares Kailash. Amjad agreed to reprise Gabbar – on one condition – 'He said that if the press asks you about this ad, you must say I gave the money to charity and didn't keep it for myself.' The actor found it embarrassing to accept payment for the ad, so he donated the money. Mac Mohan and Viju Khote also returned as Sambha and Kaalia, respectively. Kailash even sourced the original props from JP Sippy Films and recreated the rugged backdrop at a stone quarry near Mumbai. The ad's script was written by Javed Akhtar and echoed the same dialect, attitude, and even sound effects from the film. The ad was a game-changer. 'It was a complete revolution in advertising. It is one of the most memorable ads, and after 50 years, people are still talking about it,' says Kailash. From Maggi to Clinic Plus, Alpenliebe to Bajaj, brands have gleefully borrowed from Sholay. In a 2005 Tetley Tea ad, Sambha refuses to cower before his Sardar, flipping Gabbar's trademark menace into domestic comedy. Goli, the vada pav food joint chain, used a famous dialogue 'Ab goli kha' for its promotions. In an internet advertisement for Orbit chewing gum made in 2011, animated versions of Gabbar and Thakur enact a hilarious altercation. Even government and public service campaigns have jumped on the bandwagon. In one voter awareness ad, a Thakur lookalike uses his mouth to stamp and drop a ballot into the box. UNICEF's Sampoorna Swachhta Abhiyan featured look-alikes of all four main protagonists to drive home its message. And in 2014, when Sholay was re-released in 3D, Amul ran a clever ad with Jai and Veeru back on the motorbike and sidecar, Basanti in tow - all wearing 3D glasses. Iss kahani mein action hai, emotion hai aur iske bohot saare remakes hain... There have been many reakes and parodies of Sholay. Sholay has long inspired parodies, spoofs, and reboots. From Ramgarh Ke Sholay (1991) to Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag (2007), filmmakers have reinterpreted the film for decades. There's a Bhojpuri version titled Gabbar Singh , starring Ravi Kishan and produced by Ekta Kapoor, and a comic spin-off Malwa ke Sholay , where Basanti marries Gabbar. Salman Khan once expressed interest in a reboot. 'If I had to remake any of their films, I would want to remake Sholay . I can play Jai and Veeru both, I can also play Gabbar,' he said in the documentary Angry Young Men , about Salim-Javed. And why not? As Veeru says, "Iss kahani mein action hai, emotion hai, tragedy hai.' Actor Sachin Pilgaonkar, who had a small role in the original, created a parody titled Chholay in 1998 for Star TV's Ek Do Teen . It featured Sumeet Raghavan as a duplicate Jai. ' Sholay is iconic—we've grown up watching it. It still draws fanfare and will remain relevant even in 2075. Every character is legendary, even Mausi, Sambha, and Soorma Bhopali,' says Sumeet. Even the kids got a slice of Sholay . In 2015, Cartoon Network's Pogo channel launched Sholay Adventures , an animated series featuring Jai and Veeru as two mischievous, golden-hearted eight-year-olds. Gabbar was reimagined as a tech-savvy supervillain plotting world domination with his intergalactic minions, while Thakur led a secret police agency named Sholay. "Get the latest news updates on Times of India, including reviews of the movie Coolie and War 2 ."
Mint
4 days ago
- Mint
Why India's music labels are eyeing regional catalogues
Tepid growth in paid subscriptions and increasing content creation costs are pushing music labels to step up consolidation efforts in the industry. Experts say this is a relatively easy way to expand libraries and improve market share. Entering newer realms brings an opportunity to collaborate with more artists, many of whom are well known in smaller, specific markets, improving their monetisation as well. Saregama's acquisition of NAV Records, a Haryanvi music catalogue, last month shows how players are looking at unlocking potential in newer languages. This June, Sony Music India announced a strategic joint venture with LA-based global entertainment firm The Hello Group (THG) to form THG India, designed to help Indian artists, particularly within the booming live music sector. Earlier, Warner Music India had formed partnerships with key regional players, including a majority stake in Divo, a South Indian music label, and a strategic alliance with Sky Digital, which specialises in Punjabi music. The company also acquired 26% of Global Music Junction, a dominant player in the Bhojpuri, Kannada, Gujarati, Haryanvi, and Oriya language markets and the music and entertainment subsidiary of JetSynthesys. Big companies like Saregama maintain 30-35% of all music releases in India, and partnering with regional labels can, in some cases, account for over 50% releases in the market for the specific language . 'These moves illustrate how regional strengths can be scaled through strategic partnerships. They have helped unlock value by streamlining rights and royalty systems, expanding digital distribution, and bringing under-leveraged catalogues into the streaming mainstream while maintaining their cultural identity," said Vivek Raina, managing director, Believe India, a global digital music company, that has acquired majority stake in south Indian label Think Music, Ishtar (formerly Venus Music) in the Hindi catalogue space, and the catalogue of White Hill Music. According to a recent Ficci EY media and entertainment report, the Indian music industry's revenue declined by 2% to reach ₹5,300 crore in 2024. The industry recorded 12 million paid streamers and 192 million free streamers in the year. The right tune Consolidation can act as a strong accelerator, especially for regional or mid-sized players that have valuable IP and deep local roots but limited access to infrastructure, global platforms, or capital, Raina added. Entertainment industry experts emphasize that organic growth for music players includes expanding artist rosters, creating original content, leveraging social media trends, optimizing playlists, and deepening audience engagement through live events or fan communities. Inorganic growth comes via acquisitions, mergers, catalogue licensing deals, and strategic partnerships with brands, streaming platforms, or tech companies. Organic methods build long-term brand equity and loyal audiences, while inorganic moves offer rapid scale, larger catalogues, and immediate market share gains. Both can be highly complementary — organic growth sustains creativity and authenticity, while inorganic strategies accelerate reach and revenue, enabling music labels and platforms to stay competitive in a fast-evolving industry. A senior executive at a leading label pointed out that as monetization from paid subscriptions plateaus and content costs continue to rise, few companies can afford to keep producing content on their own. Music labels such as T-Series, Sony Music, and Saregama, among others, have seen film soundtrack acquisition costs spike five to eightfold since the pandemic. Meanwhile, audio streaming platforms have lowered their pay rates (the amount paid per stream for a song) by about half over the past few months, as audience preferences shift away from music to other genres of entertainment, such as stand-up comedy and podcasts on YouTube. 'Capital expenditure goes up with rising content costs, and there is no way anyone can make more content on their own. This (acquisitions or joint ventures), on the other hand, is a one-time investment that allows you a stronger footprint in the market without having to create from scratch," the person said, adding that it automatically allows for better commercial terms from audio streaming platforms that music labels sell rights to. Such catalogue partnerships make sense for smaller labels which are heavily dependent on streaming and YouTube revenue and are unlikely to operate at scale, according to Mandar Thakur, CEO of Times Music. 'The former has dried up and the latter has begun to focus on long-form content. As long as you have a catalogue, you should make something out of it or the current wave of capital could go down," Thakur added. Consolidation in India's music industry could help smaller and national players by pooling resources, expanding catalogues, and increasing bargaining power with platforms, brands, and advertisers, said Gaurav Dagaonkar, co-founder and CEO of Hoopr, a music licensing platform. 'It can enable shared marketing, technology adoption, and data-driven strategies that might otherwise be costly for individual players. A unified catalogue offers better licensing opportunities, attracts larger deals, and improves discoverability for diverse music," Dagaonkar said. For artists, it can mean wider reach and fairer monetisation. That said, the trend can also have a downside. Bigger players entering regional markets can lead to monopolistic scenarios, inflating costs in the short term as they pay relatively higher sums to artists and then suddenly leading to correction. While challenges like maintaining creative diversity remain, strategic consolidation could be a viable path forward, fostering competitiveness, scalability, and sustainable growth in an increasingly globalised and digital-first music ecosystem, Dagaonkar added.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Time of India
'He is an intense individual': Kaitlyn Vincie reveals chilling truth about interviewing Kyle Busch at his most intimidating point in NASCAR
Kaitlyn Vincie reveals chilling truth about interviewing Kyle Busch at his most intimidating point in NASCAR (Image via Getty) Kaitlyn Vincie, a well-known NASCAR reporter for Fox Sports, recently shared a surprising truth about her early career fears. Speaking on Certified Oversharer, the podcast hosted by Samantha Busch, she revealed that she once dreaded interviewing Samantha Busch's husband, two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch, during his peak 'Rowdy' era. Her shocking statement that she'd rather interview a serial killer than face Kyle when he was angry left fans curious about just how intense things used to be in the NASCAR garage. Kaitlyn Vincie on Kyle Busch's intimidating peak years The dialogue occurred in August 2025 when Kaitlyn Vincie participated on Samantha Busch's podcast. Though they have been friends for years, Kaitlyn and Samantha found past interviewing Kyle much easier. She explained that early in her career, Kyle's fierce competitive nature and short temper after races scared her. 'He is an intense individual… I would rather interview a serial killer than him when he's mad,' she recalled. She admitted that when producers sent her to interview him after a tough race, she sometimes avoided the task by pretending she couldn't find him. Back then, Kyle was known for giving blunt or cold answers if he didn't like the question. Kaitlyn learned to approach him with very specific, well-thought-out questions to avoid triggering frustration. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Kate Middleton's Daring Outfit Took Prince William's Breath Away Crowdy Fan Undo She also acknowledged that being interviewed right after a disappointing race can be tough for any driver, and she understood his reactions. Also Read: Leylah Fernandez Shares Surprising Dating News Ahead Of Cincinnati Open Kyle Busch's track record of tense interviews Kyle's 'Rowdy' nickname came from his aggressive driving style and fiery personality. There were several high-profile examples of his frustration spilling into interviews. In May 2017, after finishing second in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, he ended his interview with 'Nothing surprises me anymore. Congratulations,' then walked away. In March 2019 at Las Vegas, he gave brief, irked responses to multiple inquiries regarding a late-race event. After employing an ableist slur in a post-race interview, he apologized and finished NASCAR's sensitivity training in 2021. Over time, his approach has mellowed, and Kaitlyn Vincie no longer experiences the same dread she once felt. But her honest account reveals precisely how scary Kyle Busch could be for reporters during his most competitive years. Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
