Sambalpuri album industry needs Govt Intervention

Sambalpuri album industry needs Govt Intervention

The unchecked piracy of albums along with low standard of lyrics has shattered the album industry of Sambalpuri songs that was the source of livelihood of over 4,000 families in Sambalpur and other cities of western Odisha.

The industry that once produced over 100 albums every year has been all but defunct over the past one year. The artistes, who were busy round the year, are now looking for other jobs.

The state government that was earning a handsome revenue from the industry seems to have turned its back on it despite the request of the POPA (Pachim Odisha Producer Association), due to which many of the production houses have been forced to switch over to other businesses, rendering a big blow to talented artistes and lyricists of Sambalpuri songs.

The POPA urged the state government to take necessary steps to make the industry functional for the greater interest of the artistes of the region. “We have produced over 150 albums over the past decade. But because of the problem of piracy, now it has become difficult to even earn the cost of production. So we have stopped album production, switching over to other suitable businesses,” said an album producer Dilip Panda. (The Times of India)