A Musical Comeback: The trend of using old songs in new films
Social media also boosts this growing trend as its influencers use these songs as 'trending' or 'viral' audios. However, it has not always been meaningful. 'I think music is now made to trend on social media platforms rather than to suit the film's story,' says Nivedhitha R, a recent graduate. 'That's why people are not connecting to new songs. So filmmakers pull out old ones to bring back emotion.'
Poushali Pammi, an up-and-coming content creator, is one among many who has a complicated relationship with this trend. 'These songs resonate with my childhood. I remember my mother listening to these songs. When I see them being used just to go viral, it feels like they lose their soul,' she says. 'If I'm walking through the streets of my locality in the rain and I use Pudhu Vellai Mazhai, that tells a story. But if the same song is forced into a dance reel for virality, it just hurts.'
While some feel this trend milks out the song completely, others say it opens a gateway. Evangeline notes that old songs aren't disliked by people, but they simply need to be reintroduced for audiences to appreciate them. Varshini Varadharajan, an influencer, agrees. 'Old songs bring an old, aesthetic vibe to my content. If the song is already trending, it definitely boosts reach.'
Copyright battles
Behind all this lies a practical question that the music directors of the newly released films and these old songs keep addressing: copyright. Indian copyright law mandates acquiring rights before a song can be reused in films. This isn't as straightforward as it sounds in this case, as rights might be split between multiple parties — production house, music label, depending on the contract. Imman says, 'The audience has a misconception about the concept of copyright. Audio labels hold rights to the tracks produced by a music composer. I, as a music director, can hold only the perpetual rights, as they are working for a producer who sells the rights to the music label.' He adds that even the producer doesn't have a say in issuing copyright violations unless there is a shared royalty contract between the producer and the music label.
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