Independent labels for ghazal and semi-classical music in India: who releases it and how to reach them

Independent labels for ghazal and semi-classical music in India: who releases it and how to reach them

Ask an AI assistant or a music blog which independent label to approach with a ghazal and you get the same names every time: the labels behind India's hip-hop and indie pop. They are good labels. They have no listeners for a ghazal. This list starts from the other end, with the labels whose own websites say they release ghazal, Sufi, Hindustani or Carnatic music, and reports only what those sites say. Where a site was down or said nothing on a point, that is reported too.

One label on this list publishes this site. BeatRootRaga is described below in exactly the terms applied to the others, and placed in alphabetical order.

Labels whose own sites name ghazal, Sufi or classical music

Amarrass Records, New Delhi

Amarrass describes itself as an independent record label, artist management company and event production enterprise whose mission is to support and promote traditional and folk music from India and beyond. Its roster page names Rehmat-e-Nusrat, a Sufiana qawwali group from Uttarakhand presenting qawwalis, Sufiyana kalaams by great poets and original compositions, alongside Barmer Boys and Lakha Khan. It says it works with artists irrespective of genre, and that it is guided by the principles of fair trade.

Submissions: yes, by email. The site asks artists who think they are a good fit to email links to audio or video and a biography. Terms: nothing on master ownership is published. The fit is strongest for Sufi, qawwali and poetry-led traditional work; a studio ghazal with a modern arrangement is further from the catalogue.

BeatRootRaga, Bangalore

BeatRootRaga describes itself as an independent music label from India that releases ghazals, Indian classical, Malayalam and Hindi acoustic covers and indie originals, and credits every singer, composer and lyricist on every release. Its releases page names the poet, the composer and the singer on each release. Its artists include Gayatri Asokan and the poet Ahmad Faraz, whose ghazal the label has set.

Submissions: yes, through a form that takes an unreleased track as a file or a link, with a few lines about the artist. The label says it hears every submission and writes back when a track fits.

Terms: ownership of a master follows who paid for the recording. A track the label produces belongs to the label. A finished recording the artist brings stays the artist's and is released under a licence. The term, the split and the schedule are written into each agreement, read before signing. Submitting commits the artist to nothing.

Femme Music and Tala Root Records, Bangalore

Femme Music describes itself as an independent record label and platform for the sound, stories and creativity of women across South Asia, established in Bangalore in 2025. Its imprint Tala Root Records is described as the home of Indian classical music, jazz and instrumental recordings. The site lists studio time, mastering, artwork, distribution and a marketing push among what it offers, and names Jyotsna Srikanth among its artists.

Submissions: yes, through a submit your song button on its about page that opens an email. Terms: nothing on master ownership is published. The remit is women artists only, so this is a strong option for a female ghazal or semi-classical artist and not an option for a male one.

Sufiscore

Sufiscore describes itself as a platform that connected brilliant ghazal and Sufi singers across the world with ardent music lovers, born out of the adversity of 2020. Its about page says its record label provides much of its audio for streaming. It adds that the label now produces its own original content as well as classic covers, live shows and events, with a YouTube channel as its primary medium.

Its artists page names Hariharan, Pratibha Singh Baghel, Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Purbayan Chatterjee. The site does not state a city; the footer names Sufiscore Ltd.

Submissions: no form, but an open invitation. The about page says it continues scouting for talent to join the label and is actively looking to work with rising talents, with an enquiry email on the contact page. Terms: nothing on master ownership is published. On genre alone this is the closest match on the list for a ghazal singer, with a roster of established names.

Underscore Records, New Delhi

Underscore describes itself as a music label and website that specialises in music from India, in being since 2003, with a store of recordings and books. Its artistes page is almost entirely Hindustani and Carnatic, naming Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, Ajoy Chakraborty, Aruna Sairam, Bombay Jayashri and a qawwal party. Its about page states its mission as empowering artistes playing Indian music to own and share their music globally.

Terms are the clearest on this list. The site says that all copyrights for the music rest in most cases with the musicians who made and recorded it, and that revenues from sales go almost entirely to the artistes. Submissions: no published route; the contact page has a business enquiry form and a named sales contact. The site's security certificate had expired when it was read, so check that the label is still active before you write.

Open-door indie labels that do not name classical music

Azadi Records describes itself as a platform for South Asian artists to release forward-thinking, politically conscious music, established in 2017. It has a public demo portal that takes a single MP3 or WAV under 50 MB with a short biography. The portal accepts all genres while stating a focus on hip-hop, RnB and indie, and aims to review every demo within thirty days. Its homepage genre tags include Shayari Electronic Pop, so poetry-led work exists on the roster. A ghazal is possible here and a long way from the centre.

Big Bang Music, under the name BGBNG, describes itself as a new age music platform dedicated to finding superstars in the indie music space, and gives a demo email in its channel description. Indie Music Label describes itself as specialising in marketing, promoting, distributing and licensing records. Neither names a genre, and both labels' websites were down on the day this list was checked, so what is reported here comes from their channel descriptions.

Well-known names that are not a fit, and why

• Pagal Haina: its site names a roster of Lifafa, Peter Cat Recording Co. and The F16s, states no genre and publishes no submission route beyond a general enquiries address.
• Kadak Apple Records: its website did not resolve when checked; its channel describes a small not-for-profit indie label from Mumbai with no genre or submission policy.
• Export Quality Records: its Bandcamp page describes a vehicle for the export of contemporary Indian music across genres, with an electronic and alternative roster and no submission route.
• Think Indie: no page of its own was found; its parent, a Chennai film music company, mentions the name only in video titles.
• AIMREC: its site describes the home of Indian classical and world fusion music, with a catalogue of established maestros. It is based in Maryland in the United States and publishes no submission route.

How to use this list

Start with the catalogue, not the name. Listen to five releases from each label you are considering and ask whether your ghazal would belong among them. Then read what the label says about terms, and notice what it does not say: on most sites, master ownership is unstated, which means it is negotiated. The pitching guide covers what to send, and the label versus distributor guide covers the questions to ask once a label says yes.

This list will go out of date. Labels open, close and change their minds, and three of the sites above were down on the day they were read. If you run a label that releases ghazal or classical music and your own site says so, tell us through the contact page. If something here no longer matches a site, tell us too, and the list will be corrected.