Artistes performing at the NCPA, as part of the Home Grown series, discuss balancing their original music with covers and building an audience as independent musicians in the country.

By Nidhi Lodaya

This February, the Home Grown series—which offers a platform to bands from outside of Mumbai to perform at the NCPA—will present its third edition. From Bengaluru to ensembles with origins in the north-eastern part of the country, the series has regularly given Mumbai audiences a taste of the burgeoning music scene in other regions of India.

The 2026 edition will feature talent from Pune and Hyderabad. While Nemophilis is a modern pop and oldschool rock band, singer-songwriter Priyanka Nath will be joined by her bandmates for an evening of music defined by pop flair.

The concept behind the series emerged from a growing number of requests the NCPA had been receiving from bands around the country to perform in Mumbai. Independent music-making comes with its share of challenges. Touring to another city comes at a cost. An acoustically sound venue and undivided attention of the audience may not seem too much to ask for, but it is often in the absence of these that musicians have to learn to showcase their art. Home Grown has been envisioned to enable these conditions for music to thrive.

Initial inspirations

As with most rock and metal bands in the country, Nemophilis began as a college project in Pune. Drummer Akarsh Singh and guitarist and vocalist Kshitij Kumar Choudhary started participating in college competitions. A few wins gave them the confidence to pursue music as a career. Along the way, they met bassist Saurabh Lodha, and formed Nemophilis. Their first original single, ‘Dreams’, released in 2019. While individually, Singh, Choudhary and Lodha are metal musicians, they play rock music as a group. “This was supposed to be our side project, and our metal [music] was to be our main priority,” says Choudhary. The band, however, found popularity through rock music. Now known for their spirited tribute shows featuring the music of American rock band Linkin Park, they have performed across India and in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Dubai over the last few years.

In a country abundant with singer-songwriters, finding a sound that helps one stand out is imperative. Having lived in multiple cities due to her father’s work, Priyanka Nath carries influences from Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi and now, Hyderabad in her sound. Her initiation into music came early on. Nath’s mother used to be a professional singer at All India Radio, her father is a self-taught guitar player and her brother introduced her to a diverse range of genres in music. Although she has not formally studied music, she always knew that she liked performing.

Having been onstage for five years, Nath says her music is still evolving. From pop-rock to pop-ballad flair and even mainstream pop, her gigs tend to have a certain newness about them. Besides a bunch of singles—the first one, ‘Unexpected’, released in 2020— the 27-year-old singer-songwriter also released her debut seven-track album Falling From Grace last year.

Finding the sound and audience

The process of finding one’s sound can be an interesting journey that winds through much experimentation. Lodha says, “During our time [as producers and sound engineers] working with clients and producing other people’s music, we picked up a lot of ways to create tunes in other genres, such as electronic, synth and hiphop. We try to incorporate them in our music instead of the usual drums, bass, guitar and vocals set-up for rock or metal music,” says Lodha. This exploration of other genres is what they believe sets them apart from a traditional rock sound. Their latest album, Hyozan, released last year, features mostly acoustic versions of their 2023 debut album, The Iceberg.

Building a dedicated fan base in an already saturated Indian music market can be a challenge, especially for newer acts. Nath and Nemophilis are aware that making music is more than just releasing a song. “Knowing how to position yourself is a skill,” Nath remarks. She does not shy away from baring her soul on paper, and she believes that her writing makes her stand out. Songs with details that she does not mind being vulnerable about, defines her style. They come with a pop flair since she draws inspiration from artistes like Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus.

Vulnerability also plays a part in the Linkin Park tribute show by Nemophilis. When, in 2017, the Californian band’s lead singer Chester Bennington died by suicide, it sparked conversations about mental health around the world. At the Nemophilis tribute shows, the band and their audience shared stories of struggles with mental health and the loss of loved ones. The trio has consistently addressed this theme in their original music too.

The art of balancing

Maintaining a distinguishable line between original music and cover repertoire is a conversation that Nemophilis has regularly. They do not have a one-sizefits-all approach when planning the setlist for their shows. “There are a lot of filters,” Singh elaborates. “It depends on the venue, what the organiser requests, the age demographic and whether it is our first show in the city.” They often perform a cover show in a new city, and if it goes well, they consider having the next show with their original music. What works in their favour is their ability to convert the fanbase for their tribute shows into an audience for their original music.

Nath too started out with cover gigs in Hyderabad and would invest that money and audience into working on and promoting her original music. Eventually, she managed to stick to her original music, along with a few cover songs if she felt like adding them. To enhance her live music experience she performs her original songs in a way that is different from the recorded versions on streaming platforms. For her performance in Mumbai, she will be joined by her bandmates Baidurjya Banerjee (guitars), Akshay Athreya (drums), Christopher Francis (keys) and a musician on bass.

For the NCPA show, Nemophilis have a new IP they have been working on called the Broke Street Boys, which they will play for the first time in Mumbai. With Broke Street Boys, the trio, along guitarist and vocalist Rohit Lalwani, will push their rock and metal boundaries and focus on pop covers by artistes such as Harry Styles, Bruno Mars, Charlie Puth, Ed Sheeran, Maroon 5 among other modern-pop artistes from the 2010s. This is their way of venturing into other genres and building an audience beyond their existing fan base.

As full-time musicians, whether for a tribute show or original music, the band acknowledges that performing live is what matters most. Lodha says, “It is a privilege and a luxury in itself to be able to play and pursue original music and make it a part of life, however small.”

This article was originally published in the February 2026 issue of ON Stage.