"Creative freedom for original music content plus share of revenue---hallmarks of this artistes-co-owned phenomenal global platform 'Goongoonalo', assures B'Day Boy, mentor Javed Akhtar-saab!! By Sr. Journalist Chaitanya Padukone

"Goongoonalo," India's first artiste-owned cultural app, is finally here with a musical big bang. The fabulous star-studded historical event co-hosted by Javed Akhtar, Shankar Mahadevan, Sridhar Ranganathan, and Sherley Singh took place on Friday night at the JW Marriott-Juhu  Mumbai!

 Incidentally, Goon-goona-lo is a timeless, catchy. melodious name, which means start humming or singing. It may be recalled that the landmark musical mega-hit movie 'Aradhana' has this evergreen duet song 'Goon-Goona-Rahen Hai Bhawrein' released in1969 ( 57 years ago !)

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Goongoonalo launches with over 100 original songs; on Day One, over 90 musical and showbiz celebs gathered to proactively support the artist-led mission-movement, which is redefining Indian music!  It's a rare and decisive moment in an industry where even a single independent music-track release often takes several weeks or even months to get into the public platforms in a big way..What makes this launch unprecedented is not just its mega-scale, but its passionate intent and classy content!

Across these 100-plus songs, singers, composers, producers, and lyricists have collaborated as "Equals", charging no fees to one another. In an industry long shaped by invoices, advances, and gatekeeping, the artists chose something radically different: shared ownership.

Every collaborator on Goongoonalo co-owns the music they create and retains copyright. There is no surrender of rights, no hidden transfers, and no hierarchy. For the first time in India, creators are not merely contributors to a platform — they are investors and stakeholders in the ecosystem itself.

At the heart of Goongoonalo is a transparent economic structure. Over 60% of all platform revenues flow directly back to creators, shared clearly and fairly among collaborators. Earnings are not absorbed into anonymous royalty pools — artists can see where their revenue comes from, how it grows, and how audiences are responding to their work.

Equally transformative is how Goongoonalo reshapes the artist–listener relationship. Instead of music being released and disappearing into data dashboards, artists can now connect with listeners in real time, at the moment their music is being heard. Through in-app features like Gatecrash, musicians can engage directly with their active audience — turning listening into participation, and fans into a living community rather than passive numbers.

The launch catalogue spans genres, languages, and generations — from classical and folk to indie pop, fusion, ghazals, and spoken word — reflecting the full breadth of Indian musical expression. What began as a 100-song launch is already evolving into a living, growing archive of original work, driven by creative freedom rather than commercial pressure.

The ripple effect is already visible. Production houses and creative partners are increasingly looking to Goongoonalo for original, organic, unique vocal, lyrical, and instrumental content, recognizing it as a space where authenticity is protected and creativity is not rushed or remixed

The launch event saw over 90 top celebrity artists, cultural voices, and eminent music-industry veterans come together in solidarity — not for a product unveiling, but to actively support a shift many are calling long overdue.

Musical celebs artiste investors present included Javed Akhtar, Hariharan, Shankar Mahadevan, Prasoon Joshi, Anu Malik, co-host composer-singer Raju Singh,  Sameer Anjaan, Shaan, Milind Shrivastava, Anand Shrivastava, Vijay Prakash, Lalit Pandit, Akriti Kakkar, Akshay Hariharan, Anupam Roy, Anusha Mani, Joshua Singh, Mannan Shaah, Mayur Puri, Nitin Shankar, Rachel Singh, Raju Singh, Darshan Rathod, Sanjeev Rathod, Shivam Mahadevan, Siddharth Mahadevan, Souumil Shringarpure, among many others.

Guests of honour included iconic senior star actress Shabana Azmi, Jaaved Jaaferi, Leslee Lewis, Anup Jalota, Abhijeet Sawant, Sanjay Tandon ( Founder-MD of ISAMRA), Bianca Gomes, Siddhartha Roy, Somesh Mathur, Suneeta Rao, Shweta Shetty, Shraddha Pandit,, Shweta Pandit, Sapnaa Mukherji, and many more from across music, film, and culture.

Acclaimed iconic writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar-saab's 81st birthday ( Jan 17th) was brought in the previous night, by singers Shankar Mahadevan, Sonu Nigam and Mahalaxmi Iyer backed by a collective chorus by all his celeb wishers present,  Reflecting on the deeper meaning of the unique dynamic new platform, Javed-saab explained, “For past several decades, singer-composer-lyricists artistes have always had "Either-Or' restrictions! Hindi movie songs and lyrics were and are controlled by the filmy situations and also by market pressures. The star musical artists have created phenomenal legacy value in the past, but total ownership rarely stayed with them. Goongoonalo drastically changes that equation. It is not just a new platform — it is a declaration that creators have the right to their work with full creative freedom,  their share of revenue, their voice, their getting public media exposure and views and their bright future" assured Javed Akhtar whose star-actress wife Shabana Azmi who was elated with the shower of love and adulation by the invitees on her evergreen legendary Birthday-Boy husband (Javed-saab)

Iconic singer-composer Shankar Mahadevan added, “Music has always thrived on collaboration, but equality has often been missing. What we are building here in Goongoolalo allows artistes to create without fear, without fees, and without compromise — and to truly own what they make together.”
Co-founder Sridhar Ranganathan said, “Artist–fan engagement shouldn’t feel transactional or algorithm-driven. At Goongoonalo, we’re building technology that restores intimacy — where fans don’t just consume music, they participate in the artist’s journey, and artists finally own that relationship without intermediaries.”

Sherley Singh, CEO, Goongoonalo, shared, “Goongoonalo was born from attentive listening — listening to what artistes have lived through for years. This platform is built on transparency, fair participation, and direct connection. These 100-plus songs are not a launch tactic; they are proof that when creators are trusted with ownership and clarity, they choose collaboration over control and community over competition. If you're a singer-composer dreamer, Goongoonalo is where you should definitely be. This platform changes the equation. Typically, when an artist releases a song, the rights belong to the makers or the music label. Here, the artist owns their song, and any revenue generated is shared with them."

Composer Sulaiman Merchant captured the creative shift at the heart of the movement, saying, “For the first time in my career, I am creating without a brief, a formula, or a deadline imposed by commerce. I am making music because it needs to exist — and releasing it knowing it will reach listeners without being diluted or redirected. That freedom changes everything.”