Delhi Duo KhoslaRaghu explores new musical horizons with 'Aawara'
The Delhi-based musical duo KhoslaRaghu (Sanchit Kholsa and Rishabh Raghuvanshi) is all set to push their creative boundaries with their new experimental EP. Blending Indian classical and contemporary Western sounds, Aawara takes listeners on a five-part emotional journey, weaving together experimental melodies, genre-defying arrangements and heartfelt storytelling. We got a chance to speak with the duo and discuss all things Aawara.
KhoslaRaghu's 'Aawara' EP fuses Indian classical with western sounds
How did you decide on Aawara and the wanderer theme as the way to move beyond being boxed into sad songs?
Sanchit Khosla: Usually, an album or EP starts with a concept, but this time it began with one track: Barbaadi. In our previous EP, we’d pinned hopes on a single track, but another song connected with listeners. That made us realise we needed multiple songs to experiment and explore a broader sound spectrum. We developed a few demos and Aawara took shape.
Rishabh Raghuvanshi: While naming the tracks, we noticed they fit a zone and Sanchit suggested making it an EP, which worked in our favour. Tanha was the only song written with that intention. NaQabil, a sadder bonus track, wasn’t originally part of the EP but fit the theme. Apart from Tanha and NaQabil, everything else happened unintentionally and worked out well.
What one element or USP of KhoslaRaghu did you aim to preserve in this experimental EP?
Rishabh: It’s hard to define our USP because Sanchit and I often have different takes on our music. For Barbaadi, we debated between a rap or a qawwali and kept both. In Dil Behra, we added an aalap behind the rock section. If it feels right to us, that’s what becomes our element: a blend of his style and mine coming together.
Both of you come from very different musical lineages. How did those worlds collide or flow differently in Aawara compared to your earlier work?
Rishabh: Our worlds do collide, but the key is finding the middle ground. It takes patience because it’s never easy to convince the other that something works. If we’re unsure, we step back, return to the track later and if it still feels right, we go with it or tweak it. Eventually, we agreed to include both our ideas and later realised it was for the best.
Sanchit: Sometimes we notice a missing X factor, anything from a sargam to a drum solo. Once that element clicks, we know the song is complete. This EP was no different: the moment we both agreed it sounded right, the track was done.
Take us through your creative process and how it was different this time?
Sanchit: Every track has its own story. NaQabil, for instance, was written by Rishabh. At first, I wasn’t convinced, it felt too sad and I wasn’t in that space. He insisted I keep the voice note. Later, while working on another song, I found myself humming his melody and realised it was in the same scale. We combined his lyrics and melodies with my new ideas and sound and that’s how NaQabil came together. By contrast, Tanha and Dil Behra were more straightforward, we only needed to refine the lyrics and set the right zone. There’s never a fixed process for us; each track finds its own path.
Was there a moment during production that you consider a ‘happy accident,’ a mistake that ended up defining a part of the EP?
Rishabh: A lot of happy accidents happen in our songs. In Barbaadi, I wasn’t supposed to sing the qawwali part, but we were recording in Punjab and tried it; it worked, so we kept it. In Dil Behra, we thought someone else would sing, but Sanchit did and it sounded amazing. In Tanha, the guitar dropped out near the end, leaving the aalap alone, we liked it and kept it that way.
Sanchit: For us, any accident that sounds okay, even if not perfect, is considered an act of God. Most of the time, it just works out in our favor, and this happens all the time.
Aawara plays with opposites, sonically or visually. Was this juxtaposition intentional from the start, or did it emerge naturally?
Rishabh: Both. It’s a conscious effort, but it comes naturally to us. We’re very particular about the sound, lyrics and story and if something feels too deep or off, we adjust it to a sweet spot that fits the vibe.
Sanchit: For example, in Dil Behra, the original lyrics — “jalte nazare, jalte irade, dil kamzarf sa sunta nahi, dil uchi pukarein, dil barf sa” — felt too heavy and didn’t sit well with the track’s energy. We changed it to ghoomein nazare for the chorus, which better suited the song while retaining its fun, recurring vibe. It was a conscious decision that still emerged naturally.
What’s next for KhoslaRaghu?
Sanchit: We’re working on new music, exploring new sounds and planning more collaborations. That’s what musicians do create and perform and we’re lucky to be doing both. We’re also working on a new album and while we’re not sure if it will be released as a full album, we’re committed to completing it.