In Conversation with Musician Bickram Ghosh and Taufiq Qureshi | Udit Narayan Controversy  - video Dailymotion

IANS INDIA

Mumbai: in an exclusive conversation with musicians Bickram and Taufiq where they discuss the rise of electronic beats and AI-generated music, and how traditional rhythm artists are undervalued. They open up on the importance of live performances, where human emotions and creativity create a unique experience. In the last, they reacted to Udit Narayan's Controversy.   #BickramGhosh #TaufiqQureshi #RamtaSong #Trending #2025 #BollywoodCountry #BollywoodNews #BollywoodGossips #BollywoodUpdates #BollywoodNews #Bollywood #Bollywoodcelebrity #BollywoodHindiNews #ians

Transcript

00:00Yet mainstream Bollywood often sidelines it for electronic beats, so the usual traditional rhythm artists are undervalued.

00:30They make it heavy by making it multi-track, triple-track, or even copy-paste it.

00:37The truth is that computerization is happening a lot.

00:40And it is visible.

00:42In earlier songs, when 4 rhythm artists used to play at the same time, there used to be a sluggishness in it.

00:50I am saying the same thing.

00:51The sluggishness, which is a law of playing, which is a live, even if it moves a little, but there is a fun in moving.

00:59That is missing these days, sir.

01:00It is human quality.

01:01It is human quality.

01:02Absolutely.

01:03It has become a computer.

01:04That is why emotions are decreasing.

01:06Yes.

01:07Sir, streaming platforms have changed how people consume music.

01:11So do you think they help or hurt artists like you who create intricate and layered compositions?

01:19Look, this is a double-edged question.

01:21One advantage in this is that today music can easily reach a very wide place through a streaming platform.

01:31If you put a streaming platform like Spotify, iTunes, Gana, Sawan, wherever you put it, it becomes available worldwide.

01:43Earlier, you had to take a CD to a store and deliver it.

01:50Suppose an Indian album does not reach South Africa overseas.

01:56But in today's world, you can reach there through the internet and streaming.

02:02But its disadvantage is that I think the fun of a physical product is that you bought it, brought it home, opened the packaging,

02:17then you put it in a CD player or LP record player or cassette player and you are sitting to listen to it.

02:25You are taking that experience.

02:27I think there was a ceremony in it.

02:29The ceremony that was there has now left.

02:33And it has become very superficial that let's listen to it in the car or in the headphones.

02:41I think this attitude should come back a little.

02:45Similarly, people should go to the film hall and watch it.

02:50That ceremony is important.

02:52Your attention is not diverted.

02:55Because we have seen all eras.

02:58We miss that thing.

03:00Our CD came out, their rhythm came out, my rhythm came out.

03:03So many CDs came to the house.

03:07There was fun in it.

03:09Someone opened the packet, someone came and took an autograph on it.

03:13Now where will you give the autograph in Spotify?

03:16This is the change.

03:18Sir, Bollywood versus independent music.

03:21So where do you feel percussion is more representative?

03:24In both places, percussions gain respect.

03:27It is not like that at all.

03:28Percussion is used in both places.

03:30See, as I said, the use of percussion is decreasing.

03:33The use of percussionists is also decreasing.

03:36But what is happening, it has its own value in both places.

03:39It is not like that.

03:40They are showing a song, it is a drum, it is a tabla, it is drums or whatever it is.

03:47They are picking up that song.

03:49See, rhythm lifts the song many times.

03:52It depends on what kind of song it is.

03:54If it is a Punjabi song and if you listen to it without drums,

03:58unless and until it is a very slow song.

04:00But if it is a groovy number, you need a drum.

04:03So the drum player is showing it there.

04:05So the importance of percussionists is still there.

04:08It is just that maybe it is not playing as much as it should.

04:13It is playing less than that.

04:15Sir, what is your take on AI-generated music?

04:18Do you think it can ever replace human rhythm and emotion?

04:21No, I don't think it can replace.

04:24I feel that AI is doing a lot now.

04:27You can listen to Ustad Bolly Gulam Ali's Raag in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar.

04:31Definitely, there is no doubt about it.

04:33But when we do a live performance, there is a slight downshift.

04:41That will never happen with AI.

04:44Tafiq Bhai, I feel that a wave of AI has come and is coming.

04:52Now this wave will have a replacement.

04:56It is already happening.

04:58AI-generated songs are coming.

05:01AI-generated voices are coming. Everything is happening.

05:03But one thing will remain.

05:07This is my thought.

05:09If you think about stage, live performance.

05:16Why will we go there to see AI?

05:19You cannot replace the stage with AI.

05:22Because if you put AI there, no one will leave the house.

05:26They will not go to the stage.

05:27They will not buy a ticket.

05:28They will not go there.

05:29They will sit at home and listen to AI in headphones.

05:32But what will be the value of the human element at one time?

05:35It will become special.

05:37AI will spread so much.

05:38Then you will promote a concert or a song that it is live.

05:44Its value will suddenly increase.

05:47And AI will not even take money to do it.

05:50Here you will have to spend lakhs of rupees to listen to a live musician.

05:55So there is a limit to everything.

05:58If you replace a human being with a robot.

06:03We are a live human being.

06:09At one point, we will have a protest.

06:12A protest will come as a human being.

06:15Now we want live.

06:17And that is going to happen very soon.

06:19It is very important that there is spontaneity in a live concert.

06:25Which cannot be in AI.

06:27AI cannot catch spontaneity.

06:30We went somewhere and saw that it is not working.

06:34We can change it spontaneously.

06:36AI will not be able to do it.

06:38At least it is not able to do it yet.

06:39Maybe 3-4 years down the line, they may be able to program it as such.

06:43Sir, if we talk about live concerts.

06:46We see that in live concerts, the public gets nervous.

06:52And sometimes singers and performers also get nervous.

06:56Sometimes singers get angry.

07:00Singers tend to love more.

07:03Is it due to this kind of case?

07:05What I would say is that the audience.

07:09What do we say?

07:12If there is a loving audience, they will not lose their self-esteem.

07:18It depends on the situation and condition there.

07:21Sometimes it happens that so many people fill up.

07:24And the audience shout so much that you cannot hear the music.

07:28So sometimes people lose their self-esteem.

07:32Although these stories are not so much.

07:35There are only a few stories.

07:37But still, it happens in today's times.

07:40If a rowdy crowd has come, then they will start thinking.

07:44Why is this music? We don't want to listen to this, we want to listen to that.

07:47All this keeps happening.

07:49Nowadays, there are bouncers with Bollywood people.

07:54Fortunately, this does not happen in our music.

07:57Our music is such that there is a limited audience.

08:01There are more than 2000 people.

08:03There are 10-10,000 people there.

08:05Because of the limited audience, people have to listen to music in peace.

08:10And people like to listen to music in peace.

08:13In this case, the chances of this happening are less.

08:16There is a big story.

08:18There was a concert of Pandit Jasraj in Bhopal.

08:23It was written there that Pandit Jasraj will sing vocals.

08:27So people came and created a riot there.

08:30They said, give our money back.

08:32They said, why?

08:33They said, we have written today's ticket.

08:35It is written there that Pandit Jasraj will sing vocals.

08:39So this also happens sometimes.

08:41But usually, in our music, which is connected to classical or fusion,

08:45have you ever experienced this kind of thing?

08:48No, Taufiq bhai.

08:49I feel that our environment is that of a concert venue.

08:55And there is very little rowdiness in it.

08:58Almost never.

08:59So those who come to the auditorium, they come with a feeling,

09:04they come with a mentality.

09:07The better we listen, the better the artist will play.

09:12Reciprocation.

09:13Reciprocation.

09:14If he is a good listener, then we will do better.

09:18Because our music is improvised.

09:20And improvisation, as I said earlier, has a risk.

09:24So if you maintain peace, then we will be able to give you better.

09:29So the price of the same ticket, you will get better at that price.

09:34You will get better.

09:36So that's why we don't have much in it.

09:50We don't even know what happened.

09:52No, the fan kissed, so he also kissed.

09:55What will you say about it?

09:57What will we say about it?

09:59It has nothing to do with us.

10:02We will tell you about it.

10:08No, we will not give you any moral viewpoint about it.

10:11Because this question is for them.

10:14And only they will know the answer to it.

10:18And why should we comment on it?

10:20Because it has nothing to do with our album.

10:23Nor does it have anything to do with our music.

10:26Lastly, sir, what message would you like to give to your fans?

10:29First of all, I would like to say that Ramta has been released.

10:33It is available on all audio platforms.

10:34Two videos have been released.

10:36Please watch it.

10:37Look, this is not Bollywood.

10:39These are not Punjabi songs.

10:41They are good in their own right.

10:42Our music is also good.

10:44So encourage this music too.

10:46Listen to it.

10:47And share it.

10:49It has reached a very large audience.

10:53And it will reach a large audience only when you spread it.

10:58When you share it.

11:00So if you like the music, give us your blessings.

11:03And please share and like this music.

11:05Same from me.

11:07And we are doing Ramta shows in every city.

11:10Please come and enjoy its live experience.

In Conversation with Musician Bickram Ghosh and Taufiq Qureshi | Udit Narayan Controversy

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