When I was around eight or nine, I started Indian classical singing. A year later, I switched to Western music, and around that time, I also started playing the guitar. Eventually, I stopped everything musical for a while. A few years later, at age 12, I picked it back up and started developing a genuine interest in music, as opposed to my parents previously enrolling me in classes. I began learning guitar by myself again, from YouTube tutorials, and later started writing lyrics.

From a young age, my dad would arrange neighborhood get-togethers called “Public Speaking.” Every Friday, everyone would gather in our garage, and the kids would either sing a song, or we’d perform a speech. And that was one of the earliest moments that inspired me to start performing. Me and two of my friends would make parodies of songs and sing them, which slowly introduced me to more mainstream pop music. Then after a while, I was like, “Okay, this is pretty cool.” 

The very first time I wrote a song was at my cousin’s house in London. He’s also into music and does self-production which has been a huge inspiration for me. When I was at his house sitting with his guitar, I spontaneously created a tune. I thought, “Whoa, this is so exciting,” and I spent that whole day trying to brainstorm new melodies. In hindsight, it’s probably the worst song you would’ve heard, but it was a life changing moment. I realized I didn’t only have to listen to songs or play guitar, but I could compose. So, I pursued it from there.

I draw inspiration from anyone, and any story that I hear. Of course, writing about real experiences is cool, but it only matters how and what you’re feeling. I like making up stories about people or even assumptions about them because songwriting is from my perspective of how other people live and interact. Nature is also another source of inspiration. For example, I enjoy using various colors as different analogies. Ultimately, I want to think outside of the box, and write more metaphorically, than literally.

The girl in the mirror is the only song that I’ve fully written and produced. I resonate with those lyrics the most as it encompasses a universal experience of hating yourself and feeling very distant from yourself. The metaphor that I wrote in the song had a strong visual behind it; there was a person, a wall of bricks, a mirror, and then the reflection of that person. Each block was an insecurity which kept piling up to form a wall. The wall separates you from your reflection which represents how your insecurities obstruct you from seeing yourself. I think that these are some of the strongest lyrics I’ve written because of how naturally they came. 

Right now, I’m taking a music production course because I hope to release my music without relying on a producer or an audio engineer. Since I’ve started writing songs, and can sing and play guitar as well, the only missing link is turning the song into a finished product. In the future, I want to release more music, and delve into new instruments, such as the piano, or explore more diverse musical genres.