Music platforms profiting from ‘Hindutva pop’ hate music: US report
The report by the Center for the Study of Organized Hate has identified 523 ‘Hindutva pop hate songs’ that promote hatred and incite violence against religious minorities.
Of the 523 songs identified, more than 50 per cent explicitly called for violence, the report said. (Image generated using AI) A song with almost 6 lakh views on YouTube says: “Jo bhi aaya samne usko cheerenge aur phaadenge (whoever comes in front of us, we will tear and rip them apart)”. Another track declares: “Bharat ka bacha bacha Jai Jai Sri Ram bolega (Every child in India will say ‘glory to Lord Ram’)”.
These songs belong to a music genre now identified as ‘Hindutva Pop’. In cities across the country, people can be heard singing such lines, reflecting the growth of independent artists producing music with hateful rhetoric against minority communities. Now, a study by the Center for the Study of Organized Hate, a Washington D.C-based non-profit, has analysed how major music platforms—YouTube, Meta, Spotify, and Apple Music—have allegedly hosted and monetised the ‘hate music’ industry in India.
Released this month, the report identifies 523 “Hindutva pop hate songs” across these music platforms that violate their own content policies. It also flagged these songs for “promoting hatred, dehumanization, and incitement to violence against religious minorities, primarily Muslims and Christians”.
In response to the report, a YouTube spokesperson said in a statement, “We are reviewing the examples raised in the study and will remove any content that violates our policies.”
The Indian Express also reached out to the other three platforms for a response. No response was received from Spotify, Apple or Meta .
‘50% songs explicitly call for violence’
Of the 523 songs identified in the report, 210 were hosted on YouTube, 109 on Spotify, 103 on Meta’s Music Library, and 101 on Apple Music. The songs on YouTube have been viewed over 198 million times, and the songs on Meta Music Library were used in over 5.9 million Instagram Reels, the report said.
More than 50 per cent of the songs explicitly called for violence, while the rest promoted or incited hatred through slurs and dehumanisation, according to the report.
The report alleged these songs were also monetised. Ads for 103 brands appeared on hate music videos on YouTube, and the “Super Thanks” feature, which allows viewers to fund money to the channel, was enabled on 55 per cent of violative videos, according to the report. On Meta, 20 of 30 prominent Hindutva pop singers studied by the report had monetised Facebook accounts.
The report said that a sample of 225 songs was flagged on the four platforms through their respective reporting mechanisms for violation of content policies in October 2025. The report claims that these songs violated the platform’s own policies on hate. Of these, 207 or 92 per cent are still online as of May 2026, and only 18 have been removed, the report pointed out.
One of the songs cited in the study is titled ‘Cheer Ke Rakh Denge’ by Sangam Dhun on YouTube. The song has over 9 lakh views. The lyrics go, “Whoever puts the evil eye on us, we will cut them. We are the saffron-clad, who will save you from us?”
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