With hits like ‘Thamana Haat’, ‘Je Chhau Timi,’ ‘Mayalu Sunana,’ and ‘Hera Na’—all of which have millions of views on YouTube—Samir Shrestha has quickly risen to become a household name in the Nepali music scene. Shrestha’s recent release ‘Andhakar Ko Ujyalo’, produced by Saswot, has also been received well by audiences and is frequently featured on the ‘Trending’ page of YouTube.

Shrestha had been considering releasing the song for over a year now. As the lyrics of ‘Andhakar Ko Ujyalo’ cover a subject that is close to his heart, he didn’t want to rush into releasing it and instead took his time perfecting the track.

“‘Andhakar Ko Ujyalo’ is about that stage in a person’s life where they feel down and burdened. So, they isolate themselves. Another individual showing love and concern for us during such a time means a lot because they shine as the beacon of light that pulls us out of that andhakar (darkness),” says Shrestha, adding that even though the premise of the track seems dark, it is an optimistic song.

It hasn’t been long since he started releasing original music. But Shrestha has been writing songs for over eight years. Before joining Garage Entertainment, his management company, he simply recorded his creations on his phone. He has all these tunes saved and uses the melodies either as they are or as inspiration for his new songs even today.

An example of this is Shrestha’s song, ‘Chaar Dewar’, which was inspired by fun times in school with his buddies. The singer had written half the song years ago. He reveals that he was influenced by Almoda’s ‘Kaile Vetne Khai’ while working on the track. “I remember writing ‘Chaar Dewar’ a long time ago. I was humming all possible iterations of the melody as I walked back home (from school), trying to settle on one that sounded the catchiest. I picked up the guitar as soon as I entered my room and finalised the melody,” he says, adding that his favourite lines from the track are:

“Muskan maa timro ramna deuna

Angalo maa bandi deuna”

A majority of Shrestha’s songs are sombre and about love and heartbreak. He thinks this might be because he simply loves talking about love. “I do want to try my hand at EDM. So, I’m planning to gradually transition into it and play around with other genres too.”

When asked about his songwriting process, Shrestha reveals that he usually writes the lyrics first and then moves on to the composition. He further explains that once he has the lyrics down, he sits with his guitar, hums out melodies, and tunes the chords to create the perfect progression for the track.

Shrestha looks to songs across all genres, languages and times for inspiration. He divulges that most of his songs are based on his own emotions and imagination. “I see music as a means to express my emotions and feelings regarding specific situations,” says the artist.

TikTok has significantly helped Shrestha grow as an artist. “A lot of the time, I upload raw versions of my tunes to gauge the listeners’ reaction to it before finalising the songs and releasing the studio version,” he says.

The 20-year-old singer-songwriter mentions that he is very appreciative and grateful towards his audience for loving him and his songs. He remembers his incredulous reaction when he first realised that he was actually gaining popularity.

As his audience is growing with every release, Shrestha has begun touring overseas too. During his first overseas tour, he performed in eight different cities, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Canberra and London, among others. “The crowd in Canberra (Australia) was particularly interactive. I had a lot of fun performing there,” he says about his experience performing abroad.

Shrestha names ‘Mayalu Sunana’ and ‘Thamana Haat’ as his favourite releases. He likes the lyrics to both these tracks in particular.

Talking about his plans for the future, Shrestha states that he wants to study music and learn all aspects of it thoroughly to improve his songwriting and singing further. He humbly adds that he doesn’t think he knows much about music, so the singer is always looking to expand his horizon of knowledge in the subject. “The only thing I know for sure is that I’ll be making music for a long, long time,” says Shrestha.

Shrestha’s song recommendations:

Chitthi Bhitra

Artist: Sajjan Raj Vaidya

Album: Chitthi Bhitra

Year: 2018

Anaadi

Artist: Oasis Thapa

Album: Anaadi

Year: 2023

Patra Patra

Artist: Prabesh Kumar Shrestha

Album: Patra Patra

Year: 2022

Firfirey

Artist: Yabesh Thapa

Year: 2020

Bhaagi Jaaun Timi Ra Ma

Artist: Bekcha

Album: Bhaagi Jaaun

Year: 2022