India's Music: Popular Film Songs in the Classroom

Abstract

Is it possible that the most popular music in the world has been left out of most American music classes? While many in the United States have never heard of it, the Indian film industry is the largest film industry in the world, with an output roughly three times that of Hollywood.' It is estimated that 3 billion tickets are sold annually, including 25 million sold to Indians living in Britain, the U.S., and elsewhere.2 This popular world music could easily be an exciting part of a multicultural music education curriculum. Including this music not only exposes students to an entirely new musical genre and cultural industry, but can also change their perception of our own film industry, popular music, and values as students explore how another culture makes and enjoys music. Most music educators are eager to learn about and incorporate the music of other cultures in their classroom. Despite this enthusiasm, teachers' low comfort level with some non-Western music, their unfamiliarity with the music, and the difficulty of accessing authentic examples can make it hard to incorporate music from different cultures.3 While there may be an abundance of materials for some regions, many others, such as India, are underrepresented in the curriculum.4