Celebrating 27 years in the music industry this year, Palash Sen took to Instagram on Monday to voice his frustration over the film industry’s treatment of independent artistes and the growing dominance of “money” in the entire ecosystem. The lead singer of Euphoria shares, “Despite being loved, we do not have a single Bollywood song to my credit. Music labels have been unfair to us, but we have never compromised on dignity and honesty.”

The 60-year-old rues that success in the industry depends more on “connections” than on talent: “I don’t belong to any group, have never done ji huzoori, and never asked for favours. People have loved us for decades, so why can’t the industry people see this? Why are connections so important when it should be about music?”

Palash adds that it is unfortunate that independent music is so dependent on films and labels for visibility. “Films are using music as a promotional tool. Big labels want half of your revenue share. It’s tough for a band to survive. For young singers today, it’s difficult to work in films. For us, the audience made us survive and showered us with love, but what about youngsters?” he concludes.