Think of the late artist KK singing the song Bedardeya from Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, which was originally performed by Arijit Singh. Or, Gerua as sung by Atif Aslam. Or even Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s rendition of Tumhe Dillagi, which included the late Sidhu Moosewala. All of this isn’t just a fantasy anymore; all you have to do is search for countless of such covers on YouTube, which you may find as you scroll.
Ace singer Shaan, a performer and close friend of the late KK, is not pleased that AI can produce KK’s voice. “It’s very insensitive, and complete invasion of that person’s privacy, without them being aware. Making their voice come alive, it is morally wrong somewhere. Today people have patents on their voice, even if alive, they won’t allow you, since that voice belongs to them, it’s their pehchaan. Would they even want to sing the song if alive, or have the same expressions? As fun and spoof it is still okay, but should not become a practice. I would not want my KK’s voice any other way than the way he sung.”
Shaan says, “A musician is immortal anyway through his/ her own work. It’s not like it’s on tape or CD and will wear off in sometime.”
Recently, Amitabh Bachchan was represented by Safir Anand, senior partner of Anand and Anand, in a matter involving the use of his voice in a lottery advertisement. Without permission, the Delhi High Court forbade using Amitabh Bachchan’s voice, image, or name. In response to the question of whether artificial intelligence (AI) can replicate a singer’s voice whether they are alive or not, he states, “Singers have performing rights and moral rights in their works and in the ordinary course of business, do have recourse to remedies under the Copyright provisions in India. Such rights can also be enforced and exercised by the trusts and legal heirs of artists that are no longer alive. Even copyright societies enforce rights on behalf of the creative community. AI generated music and its ability to violate third party rights is as yet an uncharted issue not just in India but globally.”
Recently, Amitabh Bachchan was represented by Safir Anand, senior partner of Anand and Anand, in a matter involving the use of his voice in a lottery advertisement. Without permission, the Delhi High Court forbade using Amitabh Bachchan’s voice, image, or name. In response to the question of whether artificial intelligence (AI) can replicate a singer’s voice whether they are alive or not, he states, “If somebody is not accessible, you can use their voice for something, that’s the advantage. But is it fair to the dead artist’s family or heirs, that you are recording a song with a singer through AI, and not paying for it?” Is it a threat to existing artists and their profession? “The one thing Ai cannot do is emote. You need a source of stimulation, someone has to originally song it! In Bedardeya’s case, Arijit sung it. Without a source, how will you create an AI model?,” he clarifies.
When crafting lyrics, Nakkash Aziz employs artificial intelligence to create phoney words., “There’s nothing wrong as long as it is used ethically and doesn’t hurt anybody’s sentiments. It would be very sad if someone made money out of using KK’s voice.”
One member of the Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy trio, Ehsaan Noorani, makes the following joke on AI as a useful production tool: “I use a little plug in on my system and it helps in creating a music melody, but what it does is not enough. Even if the voice recreation bit is used for fun and as a hobby, it is still a bit dicey, unless you are doing it with the permission of the dead artist’s surviving family/ heirs.”
