Chettri was no stranger to music even as a child, coming from a family of real aficionados. In fact, his father, Robin, was himself a musician who played the tabala, harmonium and guitar, and Chettri grew up watching him play and imbibing from him a love of tunes. That passion only grew with time and Chettri was soon singing constantly at home and in school. That led to his first real 'performance', when he was in the first grade, at a school event, where he sang Karna Das' Jindagi Ko Ke Bharosa, one of his favourite songs at the time. “I'd watched the video and I was obsessed with the song,” he remembers. “And getting to sing it on stage felt incredible.”

From that point on, there was no stopping him. He participated in most of the cultural programmes and functions held at his school, Little Bud, and even sang one of his father's original compositions at an event in the fifth grade, a performance that was praised by his friends and teachers. He also entered Radio Nepal's Rastriya Baal Geet Pratiyogita (the annual children's singing competition conducted by Radio Nepal) three times, and impressed a great 

deal of people. 

When he passed grade 10 in 2008, Chhetri, hoping to help out his family, started looking for a job right away, and found something “almost perfect”, as he calls it. This was a position at Music Nepal, as the in-charge of the digital department, and he worked there for two years. “I was actually tasked with making Caller Ring Back Tones,” he explains, “which means that I got to listen to a whole lot of different kinds of Nepali artists that I probably wouldn't have known about otherwise. From dohori singers, to oldies like Narayan Gopal and Gopal Yonjan to more modern outfits, I heard it all.” What the experience of working at Music Nepal did, besides offering him a firm grasp on the country's music scene, was bring him into close contact with plenty of artists, many of whom he says were truly inspirational 

for someone looking to do what they were doing. 

Later on, Chettri left the company to join Digitainment at Cellroti.com for a year and a half, during which he got to know even more people from the industry. It was something of a busy time for the young aspiring musician—aside from the job, he was also pursuing his +2 at the Global College in Lagankhel—and between work and school, there was very little time for him to explore his creative inclinations. Deciding to take a break to sort out his priorities, he quit his job. One day, when on Facebook, he happened to see an ad calling for applications to work at the Kathmandu Jazz Conservatory (KJC) in Jhamsikhel. Chettri applied, and was given a job as an office assistant. But it still wasn't enough for him to be only 'around' musicians; he wanted to hone his skills, test his own limits. So he enrolled in classes at the KJC with money he made doing gigs at different pubs. “I finally felt like I was being true to myself,” he says. “Although, it was hardly a terrible time because I enjoyed playing at pubs, and still do.”

The decision to join classes at KJC is something Chettri hasn't looked back from, representing as it did his first step towards his dream of making his own music. He's also joined the Ratna Rajya Laxmi Campus to learn Eastern classical and folk music, and is now in his second year. 

As for the song that first brought him to the notice of audiences, Chhetri says that the attention was entirely unexpected, and a very pleasant surprise. “I didn't think Bistarai Bistarai would get as many hits on YouTube as it's done,” he says. “I just hope I'm able to keep the momentum going from here on out.”