Indians are exciting people who take every opportunity that life offers them to make music and be happy. For them music is very much a way of life and it accompanies every occasion. Although today there has been a lot of influence from abroad, the music in India is still characteristically Indian while some music has been cross bred with western genres to form some kind of modern day entertainment that can be appreciated by the elders as well as the youngsters. Music is a way of entertainment, cultural expression as well as a way of inspiring people. Indians are spiritual people and so they are also dependent on their music to inspire them spiritually.
Dancing is the compulsory accompaniment to all types of Indian music and it is what makes it so colorful. Highly gyrating movements, gestures and expressions and costumes are part of the dance where they are accompanied by heated and rhythmic, beats. In fact, some traditional dances of India are now being taught in music academies everywhere in the world. Such include kathakali, kuchupidi and bharatnatyam which every Indian identifies with.
Music accompanies all occasions in India. For example, it is sung in funerals, campaigns where a lot of numbers have been composed to address social injustices and advise people on how to vote etc. To date, western classical music has no place in the heart of the Indian because they have their own classical music that is divided into two species. The Hindustani classical music is originally from north and central India while Carnatic music is from the south. Indi-pop is a cross breed between India’s music and western pop music. Usually, it is the accompaniment to Bollywood movies and it is popular among the modern generations. Filmi music is from Films and it makes up to 70% of total music sales in India.