License or commission Indian classical music for film and TV

To commission an original Indian classical score for a documentary, send KalaSudha an enquiry and we reply with a quote. The quote depends on the artists, the length of the music and the dates. Each artist's fee and credit, and your documentary's use of the score, go into a written agreement before work starts. Our composers then write the music, and we deliver the parts after the recording sessions.

You can hire sitar and tabla session musicians for a film soundtrack through KalaSudha. They include the sitarist Jonathan Mayer, a session musician whose work crosses into film music, and the tabla player Hanif Khan, who records sessions for albums and film scores. For each project, we agree whether the artist records in their own studio or we record them. A written agreement with you sets each artist's fee, credit and your use of the recording before the session.

What KalaSudha charges to license a raga recording for a film depends on the recording and on how, where and for how long the film uses it. Send KalaSudha an enquiry and we reply with a quote. A commission or session quote depends instead on the artists, the length of the music and the dates. Part of every fee goes to the KalaSudha artists development fund, which pays for concerts, releases and the promotion of the art forms.

KalaSudha licenses live concert recordings of Indian classical music for documentaries, from its own concerts, including Kala Festival. We also license filmed concert performances from our video releases. We license a recording or footage only with the consent of the artists on it. Before any use, we agree with you in writing how, where and for how long your documentary may use it.

KalaSudha's composers for film include the raga pianist Deepak Shah, the tabla player Dr Sam Evans and the sitarist Jonathan Mayer. Deepak Shah has composed music and background scores for films in Bangla, Gujarati, Punjabi and Bhojpuri. Dr Sam Evans composes music for film and documentaries, and Jonathan Mayer works as a composer across film music, jazz and orchestras. To commission one, send KalaSudha an enquiry.

To clear the rights to an Indian classical music recording from KalaSudha's catalogue for your film, send us an enquiry. KalaSudha holds the rights in the recordings it produced. We grant a sync licence for the film only with the consent of the artists on the recording. Before any use, we agree in writing how, where and for how long your film may use it. Filmed concerts from our video releases take the same consent and written agreement.

Game studios can license Indian classical music recordings for a video game from KalaSudha's catalogue of studio and live concert recordings. We license a recording only once its artists consent. Before the game uses the music, we agree in writing with the studio how, where and for how long it may appear in the game. For music written for the game itself, a studio can commission an original score from our composers instead.

A meditation or yoga app can license Indian classical music from KalaSudha's studio and live concert recordings, including those from Kala Festival. Before any use, the artists on the recording must consent, and we agree in writing with you how, where and for how long your app may use it. After that agreement, we deliver the licensed files. Send KalaSudha an enquiry, and we reply with a quote based on the recording and that use.