Bipul Chettri, one of the leading indie acts in India, hails from Kalimpong, and his dulcet notes and soothing tunes of Himalayan folk music have impressed music lovers for years.

Subtle and rich, his songs capture the essence of the Himalayas through beautiful imagery. Memories, loss, love and the mundane coalesce with the natural surroundings bringing out the poet, the storyteller, the philosopher and the maestro in Bipul. 

For a musician who has put out one hit song after another for almost nine years, Bipul Chettri doesn’t consider music as his career.

Singer Bipul Chettri has been invited as a Voting member by The Recording Academy to be a part of the new Grammy member class of 2022.

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If there is a name in Nepali music that needs to be reckoned with, Bipul Chettri stands at his epitome. The songsmith humbly denies that he represents the Nepali music in the current era, claiming that he is tiny drop in a vast ocean of Nepali music and just glad to be contributing.

Artists are telling smart, interesting stories without the need for deep cuts; while it’s clear that the album is the premier listening experience, the EP is now the musical short story.

That’s exciting, and so are these releases you might or might not have come across this year.

Artists are telling smart, interesting stories without the need for deep cuts; while it’s clear that the album is the premier listening experience, the EP is now the musical short story.

That’s exciting, and so are these releases you might or might not have come across this year.

Sparkling debuts and long-anticipated releases delivered on their promises this year

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​Kalimpong, Darjeeling-origin, New Delhi-based songsmith Bipul Chettri crafts a patient, adorned and sagacious EP with Samaya. Singing in Nepali, flittering acoustic guitar melodies form the bed for Chettri’s journeying stories.

Nepali is such an expressive language - it contains so many onomatopoeias (words derived from associated sounds), that the need to use actual words to describe something isn't really necessary.

An emotion can be described with just a simple sound,” he explains.

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(Shashwata Kundu Chaudhuri)

The whole premise of the pandemic on which ‘Samaya’ was themed didn’t make for an ideal and affable picture, so the songs tended to become melancholic and escapist compared to my earlier works.

But at the end of the day, music as an art form must also reflect the times we are living and experiencing life as it is.

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(Shreya Bose)

As the title suggests, he attempts to click a polaroid of this turbulent time, along with associated feelings and desires.

The clean and sparse production enhances the existentialism of Samaya as Chettri digs deep into the collective human consciousness through his own experiences.

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(Shashwata Kundu Chaudhuri)

Written while the Nepali-language artist was locked down like most of the world, there’s a sense of conviction in Chettri’s stories of loneliness and vulnerabilities that solely belongs to him in the indie space.

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(Anurag Tagat)

His lockdown EP ‘Samaya’ is without doubt one of best collections of indie songs this year

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(Madhusudan Raman)

"A sign of the times, Samaya is heart-breaking in its eloquence yet exquisitely beautiful in its delivery,"

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In Samaya, he laments; albeit in his distinct velvety voice - a heady palliative.

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(Swareena Gurung )

He made the entire album almost completely in solitude, which adds a beautiful rawness to the album; he seems in complete control of his voice and his acoustic guitar, more than he has before. His swift but smooth fingerstyle picking adds a depth to the songs but never steals focus from his thoughts

‘There will be huge shifts in the way musical events would be organised and every artiste will be affected in some way or the other’

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(Urvashi Bhattacharya )

His is an amazing story, no matter how many times he has narrated it. A story about this man, who grew up in Darjeeling with his guitar and his music, and three years ago, quietly popped out his debut song Wildfire becoming one of the most popular independent musicians in the country, known for his Nepali folkish sounds.

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(Staff Writer)

The artist and songs of our time could have a variety of definitions, yet there are those that 50 years down the line will say 'Those were the songs of our time'.

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(Pankaj Dhungel)

प्रसिद्ध गायक विपुल क्षेत्री एकताका अंग्रेजी गीतमा आफ्नो भविष्य खोजिरहेका थिए। कसरी उनी नेपाली गीत गाउन पुगेँ? उनको गीत कसरी बन्छ र आफ्नो सङ्गीतको सम्बन्धमा उनी के भन्छन्? एक अन्तर्वार्ता

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(Shreejana Shrestha)

It’s no secret that Bipul is an accomplished guitarist and vocalist, and that is pretty much the focus of this track. 

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(Madhusudan Raman )

EastMojo editor-in-chief caught up with the singer Bipul Chettri before his performance at the North East Festival held at Indira Gandhi Centre for Arts and Culture, New Delhi

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(Karma Paljor)

Delhi-based folk singer Bipul Chettri is a rage among Nepali-speaking communities. It comes as no surprise that he’s mobbed at concert venues for selfies by his army of supporters.

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(Andrew Amsan)

Looking back, it does seem that his wishful chant of “home calling, home" on his first album, backed by wah-wah pedal guitar effects and a loopy didgeridoo, set the agenda for Chettri’s music—global in its musical skin, looking inward at its core.

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(Shamik Bag)

Mid 2016 saw the launch of his second album ‘Maya’ which cemented Bipul as the face of Nepali music for many. Yet, his demeanour don’t reflect the effects you would expect such fame and success would have on him. Introduce him to a fellow oblivious to the world of music as a teacher and he’d be none the wiser. 

Don’t miss a single word as Adwiti Subba Haffner interviews the chappal wearing, folk song singing, homesickness inducing, our very own humility toting, Bipul Chettri for a down-to-earth interview where he opens up about his creative process, offers his insights on songwriting, his opinion on where Gorkhali music is heading towards...