2024 was an incredible year for Indian music, especially internationally, where many artists managed to break through on a previously unheard-of level.
The concept of reels and shorts leading to songs becoming viral and thus giving artists exposure to a new and larger audience also worked in favour of many. Several of these artists had one or two of their songs go viral through short-form video content, from where the curiosity of the audience increased, eventually making them go viral.
The indie music scene has also been getting more listeners, with audiences now feeling fatigued with the general Bollywood music and wanting new artists who give quality over quantity.
Here we take a look at some up-and-coming Indian artists who are a must follow on Instagram for 2025.
Tanishka Bahl (@tanishkabahlmusic)
Tanishka Bahl, a singer-songwriter has often been noticed for her soulful covers of other popular songs. But since then she has expanded to making her own music with her song ‘TU’, released in October this year.
The 20-year-old artist started posting covers of songs on social media in 2019 and has had 5 years of vocal training from the T-Sereies Stageworks academy.
Ved (@hagrid_sings__)
Ved is among the popular music influencers of India and is quite known for his soulful music sessions and collaborations with other musician friends. Sitting with just a mic and his guitar, Ved records more acoustic-style covers of popular songs from other Indian artists.
Sooraj Cheruka/Hanumankind (@hanumankind)
Practically no one is a stranger to 31-year-old rapper Sooraj Cherukat aka Hanumankind’s song Big Dwags, and if you are then you’ve probably been living under a rock. The song that became a global sensation has collected over 184 million views in just five months of its being uploaded.
But beyond that, the song became an absolute rage, especially on an international scale where people from all around the world were reacting to it and then getting surprised to hear that the artist was from India. The song ranked at No.9 in the Billboard Global 200 singles in August.
Read More: ED VoxPop: Will Gen Z Pay Exorbitant Prices To Watch Their Favorite Artist Perform?
Justh (@i.justh)
Justh, an indie musician who has never revealed his true name, had his song ‘Chor’ becoming the most viral song on Spotify India and even had celebrities like Madhuri Dixit making reels to it.
Justh was formerly a Chartered Accountant, before taking on music as a full-time art and released Chor in December 2023.
The music video on YouTube has to date gotten 26 million views, however, the artist doesn’t want to assign any meaning to the song as he feels “that will restrict the song.”
The artist hailing from East Delhi’s Krishna Nagar claims that his stage name ‘Justh’ means “state of love and energy.”
Sai Abhyankkar (@abhyankkar)
Sai Abhyankkar’s Tamil song Aasa Kooda became another viral chart-topper in India. Sung by Sai Abhyankkar and Sai Smriti, the song part of the Think Indie album is about the growing desire of a girl and boy for each other and how they fell in love at first sight.
This was Abhyankkar’s second hit after his debut independent single ‘Katchi Sera’ also went viral to become one of the most searched songs of 2024 worldwide.
Sai Smriti (@smriti_ekaa)
Sai Smriti, elder sister to Sai Abhyankkar is also not someone to ignore. Although just one song old, it is hoped that she will come out with more songs next year.
In an interview with TOI Sai Smriti talking about the process said, “The recording was tedious, but I loved it because the output was beautiful. It was worth every minute we spent. I’m glad I did my first recording with him. It was lovely to see people reciprocate to all that he has put into his music. He’s been creating music since he was 13. He would rather sit in the studio all day than go out.”
Both Sai Abhyankkar and Sai Smriti are the children of playback singers Tippu and Harini.
Gagni Porwal (@gagni.porwal)
Gagni Porwal’s song ‘Lovebomber Baby’ went on to become a viral hit, with some calling it cringe, however, many others connected with it. The song is also said to have brought to light the concept of ‘love bombing’.
Speaking with The Indian Express she explained the meaning of the song, “It’s inspired by my personal life. I thought if I wrote such a song, it would spread awareness. Because many people have been traumatised for years, they stop believing in love.
I had a similar feeling. But I sobbed for some time and decided to alchemise the pain; I’m an alchemist and converted my pain into power. I thought it would spread awareness and I shared my story.”
In another interview with India Times, she said, “I researched that a lot of girls are going through this (love-bombing) and even boys. They shower you with a lot of praise and then immediately pull back. This is a manipulator technique used by narcissists and emotional abusers. It’s a form of mental and emotional abuse. So, then I thought I should write about it so you can say a heartbreak actually, led me to write a song. It brought out the artist in me.”
Akshath Acharya (@akshathacharya)
24-year-old Akshath Acharya’s song ‘Naadaniyan’ also became a viral sensation thanks to Instagram Reels where people were posting a wide variety of videos using the song from choreography routines to animal videos and more.
The Mumbai-based composer, singer, and writer speaking with The Hindu explained how it happened saying, “I was just lucky, I think. I was sitting with my guitar one day and had a chord loop which I was playing. I thought it had good potential to become a song and recorded a rapid fire of around 20 different variations on my phone’s voice notes app.”
In an interview with Indian Express, he spoke about the song’s creation saying, “From the outside, it might seem like an overnight success with just one song, but creating something enduring takes time and effort, and that process is still ongoing,” Acharya said.
“Fortunately, I had a collection of songs ready before Naadaniyan was released. When people discovered me through that track, they explored my other music as well, which helped turn casual listeners into a dedicated audience.”
It will certainly be exciting to see what 2025 brings in terms of music, especially from Indian artists. Wondering who will be the next one to go viral on an unimaginable level.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Indian Express, News18, Instagram
Find the blogger: @chirali_08
This post is tagged under: Music, Justh, @i.justh, Sai Abhyankkar, @abhyankkar, Sai Smriti (@smriti_ekaa), Gagni Porwal (@gagni.porwal), Akshath Acharya, @akshathacharya, Tanishka Bahl, @tanishkabahlmusic, Ved, @hagrid_sings__, Sooraj Cheruka, Hanumankind, @hanumankind, indian artists, indian musicians, indian music, indian indie music, indie music
Disclaimer: We do not hold any right, or copyright over any of the images used, these have been taken from Google. In case of credits or removal, the owner may kindly mail us.
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