Spotify users in India may be in for a disappointment as the audio streaming giant has recently removed several Bollywood songs from its platform in the region as reported by Amit Gurbaxani for Billboard.
This move has affected a significant number of songs from the Indian music label company, Zee Music, including chartbusters and popular hits from the past. In addition to Spotify, the Zee Music catalog is currently missing from the Indian streaming platform Gaana as well.
The removal of these songs comes as the licensing agreement between the two companies expired, resulting in Spotify delisting Zee Music’s songs from its platform.
One of the notable songs that were removed is “Apna Banaa Le”, which was the number one track on Spotify India. However, Spotify has confirmed that they have been in negotiations with Zee Music to try to find a mutually agreeable solution and will continue to do so in good faith.
This means that Spotify users in India will not have access to several hit songs, including “Malhaari” from Bajirao Mastani, “Kaala Chashma” from Baar Baar Dekho, “Kalank”, “Maiyya Mainu” from Jersey, “Makhna” from Drive, and “Namo Namo” from Kedarnath, among others. Additionally, other popular songs from Bollywood movies like Gully Boy, Veere Di Wedding, and Raees are also missing from the platform.
Zee Music is one of the biggest music label companies in India and has a YouTube subscriber base of over 93.6 million, making it the second-most subscribed Indian music channel on the platform after T-series.