page_title: Music of India
section_title: Indian rock
hierarchical_section_title: Music of India / Popular music in India / Western music adoption in India / Rock and metal music / Indian rock
caption_attribution_description: English: Nicotine playing at 'Pedal To The Metal', TDS, Indore, India.
context_page_description: The music of India includes multiple varieties of classical music, folk music, filmi, Indian rock, and Indian pop. Indian pop and Indian rock are derived from western rock and roll. India's classical music tradition, including Hindustani music, Bhartiya music and Carnatic, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several areas. Music in India began as an integral part of socio-religious life.
context_section_description: The rock music scene in India is small compared to the filmi or fusion musicality scenes. Rock music in India has its origins in the 1960s when international stars such as the Beatles visited India and brought their music with them. These artists' collaboration with Indian musicians such as Ravi Shankar and Zakir Hussain have led to the development of raga rock. International shortwave radio stations such as The Voice of America, BBC, and Radio Ceylon played a major part in bringing Western pop, folk, and rock music to the masses. Indian rock bands began to gain prominence only much later, around the late 1980s.
  It was around this time that the rock band Indus Creed formerly known as The Rock Machine got itself noticed on the international stage with hits like Rock N Roll Renegade. Other bands quickly followed. With the introduction of MTV in the early 1990s, Indians began to be exposed to various forms of rock such as grunge and speed metal, impacting the national scene. The cities of the North Eastern Region, mainly Guwahati and Shillong, Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore have emerged as major melting pots for rock and metal enthusiasts. Bangalore has been the hub for rock and metal movement in India. Some prominent bands include Nicotine, Voodoo Child, Indian Ocean, Kryptos, Thermal and a Quarter, Demonic Resurrection, Motherjane, Avial, and Parikrama. Rock-specific labels such as DogmaTone Records and Eastern Fare Music Foundation have since emerged, supporting Indian rock acts.
  From Central India, Nicotine, an Indore-based metal band, has been credited with pioneering metal music in the region.
caption: Nicotine playing at 'Pedal to the Metal', TDS, Indore, India in 2014. The band is known for being the pioneer of metal music in Central India.
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