India’s Soundtrack of Hate, With a Pop Sheen
Mixing
dance tracks with calls for religious warfare, Hindutva pop amplifies a
wave of Hindu nationalism in Narendra Modi’s India.
Laxmi Dubey performing last month in the town of Tumgaon, near Raipur, India.Rebecca Conway for The New York Times
By Kai Schultz
- Nov. 10, 2019
- RAIPUR, India — The Indian pop star, swaddled in gold-trimmed tulle, stepped to the front of the stage at a neighborhood concert. Thunder effects crackled through speakers stacked near an electronics store.
“Every house will be saffron!” the singer, Laxmi Dubey, yelled into her microphone, referring to the color representing Hinduism. “We have to make terrorists run from our blessed land!” The crowd cheered when she added a throat-slitting hand gesture.Ms. Dubey is one of the biggest stars driving the rise of Hindutva pop music in India over the past few years. Hindutva is a word describing a devout Hindu culture and way of life, and the music that bears its name sets traditional Hindu religious stories or Bollywood clips to dance beats — with added lyrics that in some cases openly call for the slaughter of nonbelievers, forced conversions, or attacks on Pakistan.The songs are amassing huge numbers of views on YouTube — Ms. Dubey’s most popular song has more than 50 million on its own — and a growing fan base among the young. [ . . . ]
