New Delhi-based singer-songwriter Justh live in concert. Photo: Courtesy of the artist
Everyone from actor Madhuri Dixit to pet parents to food bloggers have used Justh’s song “Chor” as a soundtrack to their lives. The New Delhi singer-songwriter has arguably had the hit of the year (even though the song released in 2023) and he says over a video call that he was convinced it was going to be big even before it was out.
Seated in what looks like a studio room of a musician, complete with guitars, ukulele and more, Justh says, “Everybody thinks that I’m a cuckoo case and I’m not even getting started here.” Artists will always have self-belief, but maybe they need commitment and belief on Justh’s level – “Chor” has nearly 20 million streams on Spotify, 20 million more YouTube views on the music video and has been used in over 1 million Reels on Instagram.
He says this belief has been with him ever since he was a child and goes beyond making music or art in general. It wasn’t always this way, though. “There was a period in my life for two years, especially when I was in 11th/12th [class in school] when I had lost all my self-belief,” Justh says. He had shifted his school from a smaller one to one of the “biggest, prestigious schools in Delhi” and he was no longer “the most important guy.” He adds, “I completely became part of the crowd and I completely lost all self-respect. But then I met myself again.”
It might seem to some that Justh’s honed songwriting and honest, world-wise lyrics on “Chor” came after years of being a struggling independent artist, but the truth is a lot more nuanced. He wrote poems as a kid but admits that he didn’t know the first thing about singing or playing music. Even as he picked up a chartered accountant job at a multinational company, he scratched his writing itch and became a scriptwriter and filmmaker in Mumbai. Without getting into the specifics, he mentions a short film that he directed went to film festivals and Justh climbed up the ladder pretty quickly to become a chief assistant director on a big Bollywood film, but it tanked. He says, “I was working 18 hours a day, I was just giving it my all so I rose very quickly in the game.”
After that film’s release, he moved back to Delhi and says he “meditated a lot for an entire year.” Justh clarifies that he didn’t mean for it to be an entire year. “I was just doing a lot of self-reflection,” he says. Like he’s extracting a precise memory from his mind, Justh recounts waking up at 2 am one night in 2015 and thinking he’s “born for music” even though he had no music training or background. For most, the learning comes first and then the resolve to make it a profession. “I’m probably the only one who’s decided he’s going to be a professional musician and then bought a guitar and started learning music the next day,” Justh says with a laugh.
The years of work came after that and Justh says he deliberately didn’t put much music out – before “Chor,” his debut single was “Dhoondta Hu” in 2020 and a three-track work-in-progress sonic snapshot and collection of demos called First Verses. On-brand for his philosophical mysticism that made “Chor” such a hit, Justh says he doesn’t see himself as a professional musician. “I kind of figured out that the perfect vehicle for me to express my thoughts or my feelings around the universe, my world, my life, whatever would be music,” he says.
True to the openness of “Chor” in terms of interpretations, Justh says it’s not so much about the message or the medium, but the need to express. “I’m not really interested in giving any message, to be honest,” the artist adds.
People have made it their own song and that’s a delight for Justh, with the reach not having been backed by any label or marketing money. It also turned people towards his small catalog of prior releases, which he says has been “heartening.”
Speaking of marketing, what has the deluge of attention from the music and entertainment industry meant for Justh? “Nobody’s asked me that,” he says with a smile. He’s been through the college festival circuit, sat down at music studios, he’s been at the open mics and eventually gone on to do club shows and house concert tours. “Now when suddenly everybody is coming to you as if they’re your best friend, you’re just calm and you’re like, ‘Okay, I wasn’t born yesterday.’ I don’t want to be arrogant but I don’t want to be shortchanged either,” he says.
While he’s got a diplomatic and even-headed stance about the music industry (“Everybody’s doing their job and everybody has to justify their salary”), Justh understands that “everybody’s got to ride on something that’s working” like “Chor.” He adds, “But for me, it’s extremely important to be aware that I don’t want to get swayed by this whole razzmatazz because I have a specific vision of where I want to go and I want to preserve the honesty and authenticity.”
True to his word, it’s been nearly half a year since the release of “Chor” and while there have been T.V. appearances and big-stage performances that have made Justh a household name, there has been no new music yet. Neither has he done the expected thing and signed with a movie studio or label to have his song re-recorded and slapped onto a Bollywood soundtrack. “I’m in no hurry to ride this wave,” he says.
Justh is “very cognizant” about how much money he can make by milking the success of “Chor” in terms of performances, but he’s only done a handful of shows at best. It’s not exactly a clear answer by his own admission, but Justh says, “I have a very different view of how I see life and what I want to do with music.” It’s challenging, no doubt, to politely decline offers “when real money is on the table” but the artist says it’s more about doing things that feel “truthful and honest” about who he is and that’s a continuous quest.
He’s keeping his sense of confidence throughout the quest, in his craft as well as the “cultural shift” that’s occurring in the world. “I have a feeling we’re at the start of a major shift,” Justh says.
