Bollywood has had a long history of finding “inspiration”—or barefaced plagiarism. Nivedita Dey recounts the many films, songs, and creators who imitated from the West (and more) and muses on the value of artistic originality.

Imtiaz Ali’s biographical drama Amar Singh Chamkila (2024) returns to the profane and scandalous themes of the Punjabi artist’s music, reclaiming the singer’s societal impact, and exposing the flawed notions of morality in Punjab’s cultural milieu. By Deepansh Duggal

A personal story of music and brotherhood: “Kau had also bought me the album before he left the country. Even though he would come back soon, it would turn out that us living apart in different cities would be a feature—and not a bug.” By Deepak Sridhar

With a bloodthirsty protagonist and an army of brute Sikh men, Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s controversial hit Animal reduces the Punjabi folk song “Arjan Vailly”—a storied war cry against oppression—into a chorus of vile brutality. By Deepansh Duggal

In a wide-ranging conversation, bandmates Vikramjit ‘Tuki’ Banerjee and Chandrani Banerjee of Krosswindz spoke about the legendary band’s inception, the legacy of Bangla rock, secrets of their musical craft, and much more. By Ronald Tuhin D’Rozario

From the happy chorus of ‘Desi trick or treat’ singers to the problematic lyrics in folk classics, Deepansh Duggal takes a deep dive to explore the cultural significance of Punjabi Lohri music in contemporary times.

Saurabh Sharma explores the rising wave of propaganda anti-Muslim music on Indian airwaves, songs filled with jingoism, religious bigotry, and xenophobia masquerading as art.

Dhani Muniz looks back at a masterpiece of cross-cultural curation, Miles From India, a one-of-a-kind document of two traditions bonding over a shared appreciation and recognition of the language of a true musical maverick.

Personal Essay: Erisa Neogy is a backwoods Renaissance luthier, beatnik and general enigma. For the working musician, his workshop in Auroville is something out of a fairy-tale. By Dhani Muniz

Harish Raghavan’s work is the first full-band application of Indian classical concepts in jazz that sound and feel natural. Dhani Muniz explores the band’s music and deconstructs Indian flavours in jazz.

What’s The Chakkar? Episode 17: We’re listening to Mir Kashif Iqbal; watching Gehraiyaan; and reading Chandan Pandey and Alice Munro. Featuring Anurag Tagat, Prateek Santram, and Shaista Vaishnav. Hosted by Karan Madhok.

What’s The Chakkar? Episode 16: We’re reading Krupa Ge and Gary Shteyngart; watching 83; and listening to Aditi Ramesh. Featuring Shaista Vaishnav, Prateek Santram, and Ady Manral. Hosted by Karan Madhok.