Following Arijit Singh’s bowing out from playback singing, it has sparked long-term uncertanties over how singers are treated and paid in the film industry. As fans and industry insiders grapple with the loss of one of Hindi cinema’s most influential voices, concerns have also surfaced over the fate of artists with far less power and visibility. Amid this backdrop, singer Abhijeet Sawant comes up with his candid comments over remuneration, royalties, and the systemic exploitation of playback singers.
Adding that people don’t want singers to emerge bigger than the film.
Appearing on Pentarise Studios’ YouTube channel, Abhijeet was asked directly over the payment structure in film music. Though initially hesitant, he explained why singers are often paid a fixed, limited amount.
Further adding people don’t want the singers to emerge bigger than the film itself. That’s why they are paid a certain amount. Musicians still don’t receive royalties for film music. So Biddu, who worked on Lafzon Mein, also did a couple of songs in the West, and he gets so much royalty payment from those two songs that he can survive his whole life on that money. We don’t even get enough money to sustain our livelihood.
Abhijeet went on to describe how the system survives because singers themselves fear losing opportunities. According to him, many artists agree to unfair terms just to get their voice featured in a film.
“They have created a system like that. Singers are themselves greedy for opportunities, and they know that ‘if this song gets released in my voice, with some big star lip-syncing, then he can use this song for his entire life.’ Singers themselves don’t want money, because they just want to sing the song or work with a certain producer. They accept whatever amount they get, because if they don’t do it, someone else will. Adding that singers get exploited a lot.
News Edit KV Raman