Sahil, Sagar, Mohit and Manav from Twin Strings talked to us about the process and vision behind their latest song, Woh Tum Ho, the band's mission, their journey, and more!
Back in the 90s, very many indie bands in India enjoyed a massive craze as their music was different from what was usually heard in films and they captured the beat of the nation that was growing up with the impact of globalisation. From then to now, the culture of bands, especially boy bands, hasn't been as popular here as it is in the West. Nevertheless, it still has its musical impact. In addition to this list is Twin Strings, a quartet comprising of Sahil, Sagar, Mohit, and Manav. This music-based start-up was formed by Sagar and Sahil, who, after their short stint in engineering, realized their passion for music and pursued it. Soon after, they were joined by Mohitas a percussionist and Manav as the lead singer.
The last couple of years have been nothing less than a roller-coaster ride for them. From garnering immense praise for their unique renditions of popular songs on YouTube to performing with various celebrity artists, launching Twin Strings Lounge, touring worldwide, and now releasing an original song, Woh Tum Ho, they've hand their hands full. Today, with their understanding of blending the power of social media with music, they've become a rising sensation.
Their track, Woh Tum Ho is inspired by the simple yet powerful feeling of falling in love with someone so deeply that all you see and hear is them. It beautifully captures the essence of longing and yearning, portraying a moment when the world fades away, leaving only the presence of this person. We spoke to Twin Strings about this track, their journey and more.
Y'all started as two people and eventually made your way into a quartet. How did that happen? What's the story behind your band name 'Twin Strings'?
It all started during our engineering days when Sahil and I (Sagar) began making and performing music together. The name Twin Strings came up pretty naturally to us since we are twins! Alongside our cousin Mohit Deen, we collaborated with various artists like Nupur Sanon, Pavitra Krishnan, Raghav Chaitanya, Rashmeet Kaur, Akanksha Bhandari, and more. The immense love and support we received from our YouTube viewers resulted in the rapid growth of our channel’s subscriber base. As we expanded our musical journey, we felt the need to add a fourth member who could serve as our lead vocalist. Mid-2017 we stumbled upon Manav's casual cover of a Lucky Ali classic on Instagram. At that time, Manav was working in an IT MNC. On July 8, 2017, we released our first cover track featuring Manav, marking the beginning of numerous collaborations. By 2019, Manav had joined us as a full-time singer.
Where did the inspiration for 'Woh Tum Ho' come from? Tell us a little about the behind-the-scenes for this one.
A while ago, on our way back from a college gig in Delhi, the inspiration for 'Woh Tum Ho' struck us in the car as we discussed the evolving energies between us, especially as we grow together. When Manav got home, he couldn't sleep. He sat at his piano and crafted a melody he shared on our group chat. We immediately fell in love with the melody and decided to build on it from there. 'Woh Tum Ho' is a particularly special project for us because every aspect, right from the lyrics, production, mixing, and mastering to the story writing, direction and even acting, was handled by the four of us.
Y'all are all a part of the Woh Tum Ho music video. Which challenges do musicians go through when they are singing or playing an instrument on video vs when they're in the studio making music?
For us, performing in music videos has become second nature over time as we've been doing it since our very first video. However, for Sahil, the experience this time was a bit more challenging because, in addition to playing the keys, he had to act and convey specific emotions required by the story. To help him prepare for this, we organized workshops to get him into the right mindset and bring out the necessary emotions for his role. I think this process allowed him to overcome the challenges of effectively merging musical performance with storytelling, as reflected in the video.
What was the inspiration behind the Twin Strings Lounge? How did you end up making covers for popular songs?
We honestly don't categorize creating covers or original compositions differently– if something resonates with us and inspires us, we pursue it wholeheartedly. We find equal joy in creating covers as we do in making our own music. Creating our renditions of songs is how we became popular on YouTube, and while they are covers, we make sure that our audience has something to remember from our versions. We’re grateful to have a community that’s so encouraging and for all the love they’ve given to our Twin Strings Lounge series. We're excited to announce that Season 2 is on its way!
You travel, perform in concerts and collaborate a lot to create raw and experimental music. Has this always been your mission?
Travelling has always been our first love. But we never imagined that our band, which started as a side project in our tiny home studio, would lead us to travel the world and perform in so many incredible places! For that, we are very grateful! As for collaborating with other artists, we feel that it's always an immensely rewarding experience for us. Each collaboration has helped us broaden our musical perspectives. Currently, we're excited to be working on a full album in collaboration with a supremely talented lyricist. The songwriting process itself has opened up a new world for all of us in terms of creativity and putting emotions into words. We consider ourselves fortunate to have the opportunity to work with such talented artists as part of our full-time job.
From engineering to music, how has the journey been so far?
It's been nothing short of a dream. And while there have been some struggles, every moment till now has been worth it. We don’t think any of us would have it any other way!
Have you heard of this band yet? You can follow them here!
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