The curious case of Anuv Jain and the songs we all somehow know

Anuv Jain doesn’t release music very often. He doesn’t have to. One song is usually enough to soundtrack an entire year. I first stumbled upon his music during the Covid-19 pandemic, when ‘Baarishein’ seemed to be playing everywhere. Since then, every year has felt tied to a different Anuv Jain song. ‘Husn’ dominated 2023, ‘Jo Tum Mere Ho’ became impossible to escape in 2024, and now ‘Arz Kiya Hai’, which released in August 2025, is well on its way to doing the same—the song has crossed 400 million streams across music platforms.

Jain’s songs have become the background score to heartbreak edits, long drives, wedding videos, and, inevitably, countless Instagram Reels. They’re so woven into everyday life that you don’t quite realise how many of them you know until you find yourself singing every word.

That realisation hit me at Spotify's ‘Coming Home to Anuv Jain’ event in Delhi last month. It’s the first time Spotify India built a Premium-exclusive fan experience around a single artist. Few Indian artists today inspire the kind of fiercely loyal fanbase that knows every lyric by heart. Somewhere during the set, I caught myself singing along to almost every song. It was only then that I realised just how many of Jain’s songs I had absorbed over the years without even noticing.

The numbers back up that devotion. Jain has more than 18 million monthly listeners on Spotify, with nearly half of them belonging to Gen Z. ‘Jo Tum Mere Ho’ spent 16 consecutive weeks at No 1 on Spotify India’s Weekly Top Songs chart, ‘Husn’ was the second most-streamed song in Spotify Wrapped India 2024, and ‘Arz Kiya Hai’ has remained on Spotify’s Top Songs India chart since its release last year, and currently sits at No 1.

The internet has happily handed him labels over the years, calling him the king of yearning and the face of “soft boy music”. Jain, meanwhile, seems happy to laugh them off. In conversation with his fans, the 31-year-old talked about once wanting to be a comic book writer, explained that his much-discussed “alpha male list” after a heartbreak was really just a list of habits to get his life back on track, and revealed his mother, still his biggest supporter and toughest critic, often wrote down his lyrics because his handwriting was terrible and he couldn’t think and write fast enough at the same time.

Before Jain spent the evening chatting with fans, signing guitars, and performing, The Nod caught up with him to talk about touring, streaming platforms, parasocial relationships, and why he feels it’s his responsibility to avoid being boxed into the “Anuv Jain sound”. Excerpts from the conversation:

You were initially expected to join your family business, and you did. But after ‘Baarishein’ took off, you decided to pursue music full-time. What was that transition like and how did your parents react to your decision?

I was in the family business for three years. Things weren’t looking the best for me over there because of various reasons. At the same time, music was happening alongside it, and it slowly started taking off.

There was this one day when I just couldn’t take it anymore. I realised this was what I wanted to do. I remember driving back home. It was about a 40-minute drive, and I was so nervous and scared. I was literally bawling my eyes out. It’s embarrassing to admit, but that’s exactly what happened. I got home, my mom was there. I told her, “Mom, I’m not going to continue with the business. I want to pursue music. Please just give me a year.” She was incredibly supportive. She’s always been supportive. She simply said, “Okay, if this is what you want to do, then do it. Just make sure you don’t sit idle, and do it to the best of your abilities.”

You mentioned that your family business involved making cartons and boxes. Interestingly, people often try to box you into what they call the ‘Anuv Jain sound’. What do you make of that?

[Laughs.] Did you just come up with that right now? Or had you been waiting to use it? I actually wanted to get a tattoo that says, “Don’t be boxed in” [gesturing his right arm]. As for people trying to box me into a certain sound, I don’t really think there’s anything wrong with that. When you’re building your career in a particular genre, there will naturally be something that people associate you with. They’ll know you for a certain style because that’s what you’ve become really good at. It’s my job to surprise people once in a while and make them realise that I can do much more than just one thing.

If we looked at your Spotify right now, what would we find?

Honestly, I’ve just been listening to ‘Arz Kiya Hai’ all the time because I love that song so much. I’ve also been listening to a lot of Rosalía. I’ve been revisiting her album, Lux. I was in Toronto recently for a show, and Drake happened to drop his album [Iceman]. I got into that as well.

Social media often makes touring look incredibly glamorous. People probably imagine you’re constantly vacationing in different cities. What’s the reality?

It honestly has some amazing moments. My team is always with me, so it’s a lot of fun to just hang out, chill together, and do whatever stupid things we end up doing. For example, my manager, Nitin, and I were in the US recently and had two free days. We thought, “Let’s just go to Vegas.” So, we ended up at the casinos, making some money for our country over there. [Laughs]

But there are definitely parts of touring that I don’t enjoy. I’m a homebody. I like being around my family. When you’re on the road for 30 days, away from your family and away from home-cooked food, it starts getting to you. Your health also takes a hit because you’re constantly eating out. You’re travelling all the time, barely sleeping, and constantly moving from one place to another.

What does your media diet look like these days?

Unfortunately, I don’t read; that’s something my wife does. I’ve been watching Widow’s Bay, which I absolutely love. The funny thing is that I didn’t discover it through Instagram or social media. I actually found it myself, and I’m very proud of that.

I also watched Raakh, which I thought was beautiful. It really took me by surprise. Apart from that, I’ve been planning a very big purchase in my life, so I’ve spent an unhealthy amount of time on YouTube trying to figure out whether I should buy it or not.

Can you tell us more about that?

Absolutely not. [Laughs]

Your fans often feel a deep emotional connection with your music. What are your thoughts on them creating parasocial relationships?

There are times when I don’t like it, but not because of me. I’m going to be fine. I worry more from their perspective. There’s always a boundary that needs to be maintained. You can absolutely have a wonderful relationship with an artist, and honestly, listening to their music is enough. Coming to their shows is a huge bonus, and I genuinely appreciate that.

But when people start stepping into your personal life, that’s when it becomes a little complicated. I don’t want to be rude to anyone, but I also have to think about my family’s safety and security. At the same time, I also want to tell people that this isn’t what they're supposed to do. You should have an identity of your own. Figure yourself out. I am not your identity.

You’ve become one of India’s biggest independent artists over the last few years. How do you stay grounded?

My family and friends keep me grounded. Oh my God, I can’t even tell you the kind of things they say to me or make me do. I remember something that happened during the pandemic. I had just released ‘Alag Aasmaan’ in 2020, and the song was doing really, really well. The next morning, I walked downstairs feeling like a proper star. My mom looked at me and said, “Yeah, okay. That’s enough. Here’s a broom. Start sweeping the house.” So that’s pretty much how life works for me. And I also think success came to me at the right time. I was already 24 or 25 when my music started reaching people. By then, life had already knocked me around quite a bit and humbled me in many ways.

Do you pay attention to your streaming numbers, and do the numbers ever bother you?

Yeah, a hundred per cent. I’m a numbers guy. Until now, they’ve always kept going up, so there hasn’t really been anything to worry about. But maybe one day, if they start falling... I don’t know. There’s always that little sense of paranoia. You wonder, “What if it all goes away?” But I also think our brains have a way of adapting. You learn to focus on the positives as well.