Do you remember “Chokra”?
Released in 1995, the song introduced a young Piyush Soni to audiences through a music video featuring five boys dancing in Nepal. It later became closely tied to the celebrations around Sri Lanka’s 1996 Cricket World Cup victory, earning heavy television exposure at the time.
For many artists, that moment would have marked the start of a commercial music career. For Soni, it marked something else entirely — the beginning of a decades-long disappearance from the industry, even as he never stopped studying music itself.
Leaving the Industry to Find It
Around 2000, Soni stepped away from the commercial music circuit and began travelling across India — visiting villages, temples, festivals and weddings, and meeting folk and Sufi musicians along the way. He listened to traditional instruments and local melodies that existed far from record labels and charts.
The experience reshaped how he understood music, moving him to see it not just as entertainment but as part of culture, memory and daily life. Alongside this, he taught himself modern production skills: sound design, digital audio, DJ software, composition, arrangement, mixing and mastering. What started as curiosity turned into years of self-directed study.
His travels eventually led him to Goa, where he spent roughly six years among DJs, jazz musicians, mantra artists, acoustic performers and experimental sound artists from around the world. It became another classroom — one where he studied how international musicians approached rhythm and live performance, and began asking how India’s traditional musical identity could meet global production without losing its character.
Testing the Sound
That question shaped the next phase of his work. Soni spent two more years experimenting with Indian instruments, melodies and cultural sounds fused with modern production. Over the past two years, he has released around 110 tracks — though he doesn’t see them as an endpoint.
“The 110 tracks were only testing the audience. The serious work starts now,” Soni says.
His music is now available in more than 120 countries, and some tracks have reportedly crossed a billion views. For Soni, though, the reach matters less than proving that music rooted in Indian culture can connect across languages and borders.
Notably, Soni has kept human musicianship at the centre of his process. He doesn’t use Auto-Tune or AI to create music or replace musicians, preferring the authenticity of real performance after years spent learning from traditional artists. Technology plays a role in production, he says, but never at the cost of the musician.
What Comes Next
Soni’s ambitions now extend beyond releasing his own music. He’s turning his focus toward working with Indian corporate brands to create original anthems and musical properties designed for international markets — giving companies a distinct musical identity that reflects their Indian roots while reaching global audiences.
He’s also looking to collaborate with artists, filmmakers and production houses on music for films, documentaries, campaigns and new entertainment formats, drawing on decades of studying Indian tradition, global production and audiences across cultures.
The young artist who released “Chokra” in 1995 may have stepped away from the industry, but he never stepped away from music. Now, after years of listening, learning and experimenting, Piyush Soni says he’s entering the most serious phase of his career yet.
For collaborations, music projects, brand anthems and other professional enquiries, Piyush Soni can be contacted at [email protected]. His music is available on Spotify.
