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rainbows
rainbows is one of the first tracks I ever produced. A modest bedroom music studio setup and an unquenchable curiosity to explore sound, music production felt like a brand new world. Oh! what a time it was. Although, I still feel the same way when I sit down to write and produce – most of…
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‘It is nice’ – on judging your own work
An introspection about how and why to get rid of judgements, as an artist, and as a human being.
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What is the Job of an Artist?
The job of an artist is to document life. She observes, analyses and without any subjective bias, tries to convey what she sees the way she sees it. There are no opinions casted, no beliefs summoned and no rejections for the given state of things. The job of an artist is to present things the…
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February Reflections
Art is never static. Neither is the artist. After nearly a decade as a singer-songwriter, I’ve reached a point where I’m questioning everything—how I create, why I create, and what it truly means to be an artist. This monthly journal is a space for raw, unfiltered reflections on that journey. It’s not about having all…
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Aasaan Dil – A Soft Heart in a Hard World
Listen on Apple Music It has started to dawn, day by day, moment by moment, this realisation keeps settling in me that life exists in the now and all time, faith and hope is essentially fiction. And I think I wrote Aasaan Dil to get this message delivered to myself. You know how we need…
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Ahankar – Pride, Fall, Evolution
Brief Ahankar represents evolution for me. For the longest time, I have denied every part of me that spells anything other than a singer-songwriter, but secretly admired this courage and stupidity. I love every moment of being one, of course, but this time had to come – this moment of acceptance and acknowledgement that all…
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nothingman
I wrote nothingman back when I hadn’t even grown a beard. Naive, yet somehow this song managed to survive for what feels like an eternity of existence. nothingman is my friend, one of the truer types. It has always been there, for as long as I remember. Now that I have to think about this,…
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On Learning an Instrument
Evidence-based proof is a very effective way of discovering an innate motivation. There are two types of motivations – extrinsic and internal. External motivation is driven by overt juxtapositions of a secondary proof with a personal agenda, eg watching a singer blow your mind with a performance could sometimes be the spark you need to…
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The Best Music is Silence
To paint a picture, the canvas needs to be blank; to write a poem, the page has to be empty; similarly to experience music, one has to embody silence. Of course, there will be some smart-asss who would argue that it is possible to paint something noisy already, on a newspaper for example. Of course,…
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On Defining an Artist – Part II
To be an artist is to be human. What does it mean to be human? An eternal mystery that masses of civilisations have tried to decipher, but have only come close. Humans are supposed to be perfect – the evolutionary masterpiece, the magnum opus. In a very primal sense, we are; dominant, and controlling, the…
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On Defining an Artist – Part I
The artist is essentially a journalist, someone who documents. The only difference, if any, is that one holds the liberty to induce and dictate emotional aspirations, while the latter has to circumvent only the objective, factual reality. Both of them first observe, then document and iterate it for as long as they allow themselves. Documentation…
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don’t ask people to share your music
I read a post the other day, about a musician asking people to do their bit and support independent music in India. It was a complaint that the lack of tangible support from the fans is a major reason underground, original artists are on the brink of either collapse or confirmation. The lack of funds…
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The Art of Being Exceptional
There are two types of guitar players – ones who show ridiculous progress and others who succumb to the same old habits and sit in their comfort zone for decades. The latter claim to practice more but just keep running in circles until they eventually surrender to a belief of it being difficult, and give…
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Finding Light at the End of the Tunnel – The Story of “Manzar”
“Manzar” encapsulates the moment of realising happiness amidst the unfamiliar—a pivotal event not to be dismissed, but rather approached with curiosity, offering a chance for deeper understanding and growth.
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My Days in Palampur as a Fanatic Photographer
My problem here is that I am not a photographer, I am a musician, and I am dulling the boundaries between what is allowed and for how far, and I am obsessed. The beliefs that make me who I am are being challenged like never before. It is far more about this moment, not so…
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A Bright Sunny Winter Afternoon
Sometimes it feels I’m completeLike a dry leaf on barren autumn groundSometimes I feel I’m allLike a brittle dead rose buried in the ground No home to go toNo place to call my ownYet so everything everywhere at onceA bright sunny winter afternoon At times I feel I’m lostA mountain spring carving out a wayDo…
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Love Shall Set You Free
The difference between romantic love, true love, love for nature, pets, for the family is all a mere distraction. Mostly, it is a dirty attempt to sell a thing. Did you get your lover a teddy this week? Or chocolates? What did you get your mother for Mother’s Day?
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Pink Moon Walked Up To Me
Summers don’t seem to bother when you are young. In scorching heat, you walk barefoot to see your lover. The rebel in you is awake. On a similar day, an eternity from today, in torn-out Converse, dirty blue jeans, and a worn-out Pink Floyd tee, I walk under the shades of the neatly planted Eucalyptus…
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A City Desolate
I have very vivid dreams and nightmares, and my biggest fear is of some kind of dystopian future where we’re advanced in every way except in our humanity. Bryce Dallas Howard One day, I am being caressed by the soft mountain winds, remedied by the oblique Himalayan sunburns, my dry, arid body rejuvenated by the…
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Winter Wonderland
The arid desert just took a bath. The cold, wet, winter steam is a sign of new life. The Earth is celebrating, the birds are happy, the trees are awake, and the barren ground thirst is quenched. The winter wonderland is dancing today.
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I am a Bird
Everything in monotone, dances of browns and dirt, Palampur started to feel like a dear deserted ocean. The grace of this winter oasis is undeniably late. It has not rained here in ages. I slept under a fragile drizzle, and today I woke up to its blissful grace. It rained today. The dull, soft winter…
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Haalaat – A Personal Inquiry
In 2020, while on a four month trip to Kerala, Haalaat came to me. The warm and authentic hospitality of people I met was substantial, and I am indeed a very sensitive man. Experiences move me. A lot! “How are you?” a frequent question, whenever asked, was projected with such true intentions that I would…
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Depot48 Presents Saby Singh & Rachanachar
Me and Rachanachar really bonded in Bir. I got to know the joys of spending time and talking to a fellow musician, connecting on a spiritual scale of divine magnitude. Imagine our love for the music and expression made us form a three piece project with the insanely talented Rahul on percussions. It was a…
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Saazishein – A Concept Film by Wikki Koul
I’ve always dreamt of working with the incredible talent Wikki KoulHis nuance in story telling feels truly authentic; the raw, sometimes gloomy yet transcendental visuals have always inspired me. It has been a dream to get an opportunity to work with my brother and an inspiration! After years of talking and sharing ideas, we have finally…
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Watch Your Language
Language is a powerful tool that can either bring people closer or push them away. The words we use have a significant impact on how we communicate and how we are perceived by others. Using foul language may seem like an easy way to communicate our thoughts and emotions, but it compromises the nuance of…
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Kaash – An Easy Life
Taking a walk through the woods, I stop to touch a tree. My hot burning palms need soothing. They long for a real touch, something that brings my body back to the ground. Humans, you ask, well, i gave up on them a long time ago. Not because I know how people are, but I…
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An Act of Self Love – Tere Bina
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. And to justify love is to fall in love with yourself first.
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Yaad Hai – An Act of Remembrance
The act of remembrance after all is lost is an act of true love. Not extrinsic, but something that takes me closer to a God, myself!
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January 2023
What a month has January been! I managed to release five projects! Usually I take it easy, but this year I am pushing it beyond myself. I am happy to report that I managed to keep my promise of one song per week. Let’s see how February goes!
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Living in a Box – Enter Sneham
I wish I could live in a box. But it feels like a sin, a violation of some inner divine presence.
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Algal Bloom – The Art of Dying
the day you just say fuck it, and let go of the person you have been pointlessly holding onto is the day your life gets whole lot better
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Pass Bulaao Na – A Conundrum Called Hope
Hopelessness is a virtue. The sooner we learn this, sooner the peace will ensue.
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Bol Do – The Art of Expression
Expression shouldn’t be a subject of convention and confirmation. It could be abstract yet minimal, complicated yet simple. Bol Do is a song that celebrates expression both figuratively and metaphorically.
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My Seven Days of Peace
Only the disciplined ones in life are free. If you are undisciplined, you are a slave to your moods and your passions. – Eliud Kipchoge.
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An Artist’s Response to a New Year’s Greeting
My phone blimps with another new year’s greeting. I cringe at the poor, distasteful WhatsApp graphics, but the serenity of human emotions has me lathered up in warmth. Watching the screen fade back to black, I contemplate a meaningful response.
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2022
Every year, I write down a list of concepts and things I realised and what lessons did I learn, this year was the most blessed!
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Naam – The Act of Forgetting
Sometimes it is very hard to forget someone. The more you try, the deeper it seeps into your mind. You find the name everywhere, as if the universe wants you to never forget the person. Naam is a song about such moments.
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Do I Really Need a Table?
“Do I really need a table? Is my fantasy of the ideal workplace utterly romantic?”
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Empathy is the Soul of Humanity
Empathy is the soul of humanity. It empties itself out in grace and servitude. It is what holds us together, what binds us to the same truth; it is the essence of humanity, a gift from nature.