Raise your hands if your fathers have often called your music trashy and been extra flamboyant about their choice of songs and music? We’re assuming a lot of hands did rise. While the music then vs now seem like two different worlds, that doesn’t mean we can’t admire it. Although we’ll never admit that their era was better than ours, our Indian fathers with their bougie attitude did have some good music taste.
1. Head-swinging to “Dangerous” by MJ or “Die-another day” by Madonna
Look what we have in our dad’s trunk of mixtapes! The star MJ himself. Did you get the initial audio beats of the song in your head as soon as I wrote about the song “Dangerous”? My dad used to jam to this song so much, and this is where I was acquainted to the king of pop, Michael Jackson. Quite honestly, his other songs,be it Black and White, How you Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal, were also legendary tracks.
You’re the “Madonna” to my “Sean Penn” would totally be a pick-up line that our dads might’ve used a time or two. Madonna was definitely one of the greatest additions to the music industry, and our dads are extra proud that these were the stars of their era.
2. How can we not talk about the legendary Beatles?
No matter how “young” you are – a Millennia or Gen Z? You’ve definitely listened to the Beatles. Can’t recall if my Indian father had any favourites, but he use to play and sing-along to the “Yellow Submarine” and “Octopus’s Garden” on every car trip. And even now, it is not just an old band that no one likes anymore; the songs they’ve recorded and released are actually timeless.
3. “No one knew love like Kishore Kumar, Burman, Mohammed Rafi” – Every Indian dad
The period of Kishore Kumar, R D Burman, Mohammad Rafi was a magical time in the Hindi film industry, and our dads truly take pride to have been listening to “that” music. Yeah “that” music – soulful, meaningful, selfless, and nothing like the Bollywood crap they serve you today.
Yeah that’s the dig our Indian fathers take at current songs, which we don’t completely agree to, right? I mean okay we have some Badshah and Honey Singh’s meaningless raps, but one name people – A.R Rehman. Period.
4. Gazal kings Jagjit Singh, Ghulam Ali, Prem Geet
“Wo kagaz ki kashti, wo barish ka paani,” does not only fire the childhood nostalgia or reminisces of rain petichor in our parents, but every child irrespective of the era. These gazals are indeed timeless. “Aj Jane Ki Zidd Na Karo” or “Tumko Dekha Toh Ye Khayal Aya,” isn’t just a song but a gush of emotions we’ve all felt at some point of our lives. So yes dads, we’ll give you that, we do love them too!
5. Bollywood songs, which were definitely MUCH better than this
Dharmendra/Jeetendra ke signature steps toh har dad ne copy kiye honge. You might have had an embarrassing moment too when your dads gave that look to your mother right in the eye and turn the radio loud which sang “Yeh Reshmi Zulfein” or “Mere Samne Wali Khidki Mai.” We admit, Bollywood then is not even close to the Bollywood we know now. I mean imagine “khudko samajh ke lucky mujhse hook-up tu kar lena,” being sung back then. Bollywood old-school actresses would be like
So these were some genres and musicians that we, our dads and our dad’s dad love. You too celebrate the best Indian Father’s Day and Music Day with jamming to your dad’s favorite tracks. What’s better to share your bond and nostalgia over a cup of chai and some Rafi or Burman? Get them back to those good, old, simple days that they miss so much
