The Indian Music Charts Podcast

Amit Gurbaxani and Akhila Shankar
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  • MUSIC COMMENTARY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

The Indian Music Charts Podcast is hosted by music journalist/charts geek Amit Gurbaxani and content marketeer/data nerd Akhila Shankar. On the show, Amit and Akhila use India's music charts as a springboard for a larger discussion on the Indian music business, listener trends and where the industry is heading next. New episodes drop every Tuesday.

  1. Is India going to the world or is the world coming to India?

    FEB 10

    Is India going to the world or is the world coming to India?

    While we constantly hear about the potential of Indian music to cross over into the rest of the world, what’s relatively less spoken about is how the rest of the world is increasingly trying to cross over into India. From foreign delegations scoping out the scene at conferences to international artists touring at a higher rate than ever before, we discuss where and how this is happening, and most importantly, why. As always, we look at key movements on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs India chart, this time for the survey dated February 5, 2025.

    33 min
  2. What are our predictions for 2026?

    JAN 13

    What are our predictions for 2026?

    As is now tradition, our first episode of the New Year is about the trends we’re expecting to see over the next 12 months. We’re predicting that the supposedly distinct segments of Bollywood and independent music will integrate more than ever before, that intra-national collaborations will be more common than international crossovers, and that live tours will increasingly help drive chart success. As always, we look at key movements on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs India chart, this time for the survey published on January 9, 2025.

    34 min
  3. Year-End Special: What 2025’s top songs say about the state of our music industry

    12/16/2025

    Year-End Special: What 2025’s top songs say about the state of our music industry

    If it’s December, then there will be a special episode in which we look at the Top 50 songs of the year and discuss the genres, artists, languages and labels that dominated the music charts. We talk about how deep catalogue tracks had a stronger presence than ever before, why it was a relatively better year for female artists, and what the key differences were between Spotify and Apple Music’s list of their most-streamed tunes of 2025.

    39 min
  4. How Talwiinder finally made it to the top of the charts

    11/18/2025

    How Talwiinder finally made it to the top of the charts

    Singer-songwriter Talwiinder has been among the fastest-rising Punjabi pop artists for the past few years, but he’s never had a big solo chart hit – until now. Over the past few months, his social media following has exploded and his streams have risen higher than ever before, with his 2025 single ‘Haseen’ reaching a new peak of No.2. In this week’s episode, we discuss why this is happening, and the takeaways for other artists from how he has modelled and marketed his career. As always, we look at the key movements on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs India chart, this time for the survey dated November 14, 2025. ---- If you like this show, you will also like the Evolution of the South Asian Music https://linktr.ee/SouthAsianMusicPod

    29 min
  5. How can an artist use a viral moment to build an IRL fan base? ft. Paresh Pahuja

    10/28/2025

    How can an artist use a viral moment to build an IRL fan base? ft. Paresh Pahuja

    Over the last five years, there have been several instances of Indian independent artists scoring viral hits. However, rare are the cases in which those acts are able to convert that audience into ticket-buying fans. In this episode, we speak to a singer who has done just that, Paresh Pahuja whose 2022 single ‘Dooron Dooron’ went viral at the start of the year, and is now climbing the charts. He tells us how he went about it, and the advice he has for fellow artists who might find themselves in the same situation as him. As always, we look at the key movements on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs India chart, this time for the survey published on October 23, 2025.

    33 min
  6. Revisit: How did Taylor Swift do what no other international act has done this year?

    10/07/2025

    Revisit: How did Taylor Swift do what no other international act has done this year?

    Welcome to the Indian music charts podcast, a show where we breakdown the hits and allays the trends in the Indian music industry. Taylor Swift’s latest album ‘The Life of a Showgirl’ is out and it has….mixed reviews. Hardcore fans and some music publications claim she hits the marks with it while on the other hand short format platforms are filled with reels about how the album doesn’t cut it compared to previous works with some claiming ‘she is too happy’ to produce the kind of music she has historically been known for.  Whatever side of the argument you fall on, you can’t deny that Taylor Swift really knows how to capture the public's imagination. So we couldn’t think of a better time to revisit this episode from 2024 where we discuss how Taylor Swift managed to crack the Indian charts, a market that is notoriously domestic first. Enjoy the episode and we will be back very soon! ------------------ PS: Excuse the nasal voice in the intro, I have the worst cold - Akhila

    33 min
  7. How is it easy for acts to have cross-genre success?

    09/23/2025

    How is it easy for acts to have cross-genre success?

    These days, several artists shift between genres and enjoy parallel careers both within and without the film music industry. Some enjoy an equal amount of success in multiple fields, while for others, their pop careers don’t quite match the numbers generated by their soundtrack work. In this episode, we examine why this is the case and if things will change over time. As always, we look at the key movements on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs India chart, this time for the survey dated September 18, 2025.

    39 min
  8. What should artists do when they misstep?

    09/02/2025

    What should artists do when they misstep?

    As societal norms evolve and the realms of acceptable behaviour are consistently being redefined, it’s not uncommon for artists to falter. But how should they react when they’re called out? On this week’s episode, we discuss the controversy around Punjabi pop star Guru Randhawa’s music video for his hit “Azul”, how he and those involved in the making of and marketing of the track have responded to it, and how such missteps could and should be dealt with. As always, we look at the key movements on the Spotify Weekly Top Songs India chart, this time for the survey published on August 29, 2025.

    32 min
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About

The Indian Music Charts Podcast is hosted by music journalist/charts geek Amit Gurbaxani and content marketeer/data nerd Akhila Shankar. On the show, Amit and Akhila use India's music charts as a springboard for a larger discussion on the Indian music business, listener trends and where the industry is heading next. New episodes drop every Tuesday.

Information

  • Creator
    Amit Gurbaxani and Akhila Shankar
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    92
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Amit Gurbaxani and Akhila Shankar
  • Show Website
    The Indian Music Charts Podcast

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