Bollywoodsingers have been releasing non-film singles over the years, but 2020 saw anincreasing number of artistes explore the indie scene, and fans are notcomplaining.
Here'sa list of singers who entertained their fans with singles in the pandemic era:
DHVANIBHANUSHALI
Theyoung singer has been successful at balancing Bollywood and non-film musiccareers. If she delivered Bollywood chartbusters like "Dilbar" and"Psycho saiyaan", her singles such as "Vaaste" and"Leja re" have been fan favourites, too. This year too, she didn'tdisappoint her fans. She released singles "Na ja tu", "Babygirl", "Nayan" and "Jeetenge hum", which she dedicatedto the frontline workers who are battling the Covid-19 pandemic. Her steadyflow of songs proves her career graph is only on the rise.
ARMAANMALIK
Heis the voice behind top Bollywood tracks like "Main hoon hero tera"," Tumhe apna banane ka" and "Jab tak". He has also sung inmultiple languages like Telugu and Tamil. And this year, he launched his firstinternational single "Control". He followed it up with more Englishsongs "Next 2 me" and "How many". He continued to churn outsongs in the Hindi non-film music space, with "Veham" being hislatest one. He added a feather in his cap winning Best India Act at the MTVEurope Music Awards.
PAPON
Foryears, he has been singing in multiple languages including Assamese and Hindi.Known to Bollywood music buffs for his songs such as "Kyon" and"Bulleya", Papon has a cult fan base in the independent music spaceas well. Making good use of lockdown, he came up with multiple singles thisyear including "Haaye rabba", "Nilaanjana", "Mujhe kisise pyar nahin" and his latest, "Maula".
BADSHAH
Aplagiarism charge and a fake hits controversy generated much negative newsabout Badshah, but neither could keep his popularity down. The rapper unveiledan array of singles in 2020 like most years. Out of them, "Gendaphool" was the most-talked about, for all the wrong reasons. He wasaccused of lifting portions off Ratan Kahar's classic Bengali folk song"Boroloker biti lo" without giving the artiste any credit. Badshahpromptly paid the veteran folk singer, and promised to collaborate with him ina future project. The fake hits controversy followed. According to an IANSreport in August, Badshah reportedly admitted to Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU),to shelling out over Rs. 75 lakh for promoting his album with fake likes andfollowers.
However,the rap superstar's hit count kept rising, undeterred. Among his biggest hitsthis year are the singles like "Awaara" and "Toxic". Hissong with Fazilpuria, "Haryana Roadways" also became a rage.
NEHAKAKKAR
Sheis Bollywood's numero uno female voice at the moment, and despite filmproduction being shut she had a very busy year with back-to-back singlesincluding "Moscow Suka (with Yo Honey Singh)", "Bheegibheegi", "Taaron ke shehar", and "Teri aankhon mein".
Sheliterally announced her wedding with the music video "Nehu da Vyah",with her husband, singer Rohanpreet Singh, and then within weeks Neha announced"Khyaal rakhta kar" in a way that would make it seem like she waspregnant. It was a publicity stunt, of course.
GURURANDHAWA
ThePunjabi star is popular for his singles being given a Bollywood touch, as hishit songs get featured in Hindi films quite often. Be it "Suit suit"or "Ban jaa rani", his singles have been used by Bollywoodfilmmakers. In 2020, he made his fans dance to singles like "Nach meri rani"and "Baby girl".
YOYO HONEY SINGH
Heis an artiste whose roots go back to the early days of the new-age Indian indiemusic scene. In Bollywood, he is known for hits such as "Yaar naamiley" and "The Lungi Dance". This year not only saw himreleasing his own singles, but also launching a new face, Ipsitaa, with thetrack, "First kiss". Most recently, the rapper unveiled "Jinglebell" with artiste Hommie Dilliwala. He also has "Saiyaan ji" inhis kitty.
AMAALMALLIK
Armaan'sbrother and composer-singer Amaal Mallik, known for Bollywood compositions like"Sooraj dooba hai", "Main hoon hero tera" and"Naina", entered the non-film music territory with the pop song"Tu mera nahi" as a singer. The track got a party version too. There-imagined track was curated by DJ Shadow Dubai.
KANIKAKAPOOR
Shewas one of the first Indian celebrities to have contracted coronavirus. But sheensured to end the year with at least one single. Known for Bollywood hits like"Baby doll" and "Chittiyaan kalaiyaan", Kanika released"Jugni 2.0" in December. She basically gave a new twist to her single"Jugni ji", which had released eight years ago. The song is aninstant hit.
ARJUNKANUNGO
The"Khoon choos le" singer has made it big in the non-film music scene,especially after his breakout hit "Baaki baatein peene baad". Thisyear was no different for him. He continued to give melodious singles like"Dil kho ke", "Tum na ho" and "Waada hai".