Demand for musical instruments up; Chennai, Kolkata rank as top exporters

India exported $22 million worth of musical instruments and their accessories in the first half of the current fiscal year, as compared to $38.5 million in the previous year

As India is witnessing an increase in demand for local-made guitars, drums, and flutes, Kanchipuram, Chennai and Kolkata have emerged as the top musical instruments exporting districts of the country, reported the Economic Times. 

India exported $22 million worth of musical instruments and related accessories in the first half of the current fiscal year, as compared to $38.5 million in the previous year. While string music instruments such as guitars, harps and violins are exported to the US, UAE and Germany from Kanchipuram and Mumbai, keyboard instruments from Kanchipuram and New Delhi are gaining favoured in the US, UK, China, Australia and South Korea.

The demand for musical instruments saw an uptick across the world in the past two years, when the world was grappling with Coronavirus and learning music became one of the most favoured hobbies, as people were forced to stay indoors. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday addressed the nation in the 95th edition of Mann Ki Baat and said that in the past eight years, the export of musical instruments from India has increased three and a half times. 

During his address, PM also added, "Talking about electrical musical instruments, their export has increased 60 times. This shows that the craze for Indian culture and music is increasing all over the world. The biggest buyers of Indian musical instruments are developed countries like the USA, Germany, France, Japan and UK. It is a matter of fortune for all of us that our country has such a rich heritage of Music, Dance and Art".

According to the report, one of the official also said that the One District One Product initiative has helped exports and the demand for musical instruments globally is motivating. In the April-September period, the US was the top importer of musical instruments and their accessories from India at $4.38 million, followed by Germany, Malaysia, and China.

In a tweet dated last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote that 'with Indian music gaining popularity worldwide,there is a great opportunity to further grow in this sector'.

While Kanpur is the hub for harmoniums in India, Meerut in Uttar Pradesh is the main centre for manufacturing and assembling brass band instruments, Amroha is known for its dholaks, whereas Chennai is famous for drums.