Seven Film Music Stories That Shaped October 2026
A tour by a singer who quit playback, a Tamil catalogue deal, a Dharma love song and Shah Rukh Khan's new festival. Here is the month in Bollywood and South Indian film music.
Film music used to sit at the top of Indian charts almost by default. This month its biggest voices were announcing tours and festivals, and labels were buying up its back catalogue. These are the stories worth knowing, in no particular order.
1. Arijit Singh books the stadiums
Nine months after retiring from playback, Arijit Singh announced a nine-city tour to mark 20 years in music. It opens in Ahmedabad on 9 January 2027 and ends in Hyderabad on 15 May, with tickets sold only on thumpN. "There are so many songs, so many memories and so many people to meet. I can't wait," he said in a statement.
2. "Chann" proves he still does romance
He has quit playback, not love songs. "Chann", from Dharma Productions' Udta Teer, was composed by Sachin-Jigar, sung by Singh and written by Amitabh Bhattacharya. It reached streaming on 16 October, and Dharma posted the full video on 19 October, four days before the film's 23 October release. The hook, "Chann ton vi changa tera mukhda ae jaana", compares a lover's face to the moon.
3. Warner buys the Gemini vault
Warner Music India has acquired the Gemini Music catalogue. That brings in the soundtracks for Nanban, Thuppakki, Mayakkam Enna, Singam 2 and Paradesi, with music by Harris Jayaraj, G. V. Prakash Kumar and Devi Sri Prasad. In the same announcement it signed a long-term deal with filmmaker Gautham Vasudev Menon and a partnership with Malayalam house Magic Frames covering more than 500 tracks.
4. Sai Abhyankkar gets Dhanush
Warner's upcoming film slate includes the Dhanush-starrer OM with music by Sai Abhyankkar. Also on it are Oru Startup Kadha, with music by Paal Dabba, and the Malayalam feature 40 Days of House Party, scored by Bibin Ashok. Keep an eye on these to see what Warner does with new soundtracks rather than old ones.
5. "Mutta Kalaki" goes viral
The surprise Tamil hit of Warner's season is G. V. Prakash Kumar and Ken Karunas's "Mutta Kalaki". The label says it peaked in the Top 3 on YouTube Charts India. It is good evidence that a film-adjacent song can still break nationally without a Hindi version.
6. Bollywood Music Project turns 10
The Bollywood Music Project marks its tenth edition at Jio World Garden, Mumbai, on Saturday 24 October, from 2 PM. Himesh Reshammiya, Hariharan, Anu Malik, Shilpa Rao, Neeraj Shridhar, Euphoria and Roop Kumar Rathod and Sonali Rathod are on the bill. The festival bills itself as Asia's largest Bollywood music festival. Tickets are on District, from Rs 2,499.
7. SRK starts a festival
Shah Rukh Khan is curating UNIFYD, a one-day festival at Etihad Live on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, on 20 March 2027. Arijit Singh, Karan Aujla and Sonu Nigam headline a bill of more than 15 artists, and it will be Nigam's first festival appearance. "UNIFYD, produced by D'YAVOL Live along with District, will unite India's most incredible artists on a shared stage for the first time," Khan said in a statement. General sale on the District app opened on 20 October.
(Source: PTI, Warner Music India press release, Dharma Productions, Spotify listing, District event page, UNIFYD official announcement)
