A data-backed snapshot of what it takes to sustain an independent music career in India.
Drawing on responses from 80 non-film musicians across 29 cities, The Cost of the Dream maps income, expenses, and survival strategies to reveal the economic realities behind creative work.
It highlights the gaps between ambition and infrastructure: from underpaid gigs to missing support systems, setting a benchmark for understanding how artists live, work, and persist in India’s music economy.