Viepsa Is The Sound Of A Lovesick Delhi

There comes a time in an artist’s career when they are expected to choose a path that defines the rest of their work. New Delhi-based singer-songwriter Viepsa Arora has spent the past five years doing the exact opposite, subverting that expectation.

Viepsa moves fluidly between Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, and English, blending alternative pop, Punjabi folk, UK garage, drum-and-bass, hip-hop, Bollywood, and electronic music with a confidence that makes these sonic shifts seem effortless. Known for her emotive vocal delivery and immersive, post-genre soundscapes, Viepsa has emerged as one of the most compelling voices in India’s alternative pop music scene. Drawing equally on psychology, spirituality, storytelling, and an instinctive creative process she described as a “Frankenstein experiment” in a 2025 interview with Platform magazine, she crafts songs that sound like Maggie Rogers meets Y2K Bollywood yearning.

As we gear up for Viepsa’s performance at the second Homegrown Music Showcase at The Humming Tree, Bengaluru, later this month, here are five songs that define her sound:

Viepsa’s latest release ‘F*CKED UP’ is a cathartic pop anthem for self-acceptance that transforms regret into resilience. Moving between English, Hindi, and Punjabi, Viepsa reflects on heartbreak, self-destruction, and personal growth over Skopòs’ atmospheric electronic production, arriving at a hard-won realization: every mistake and detour led her closer to herself. The result is a vulnerable yet triumphant track that captures the emotional honesty and genre-fluid experimentation at the heart of her music.

‘Golden Hour’ is an uplifting reflection on ambition, uncertainty, and the fragile optimism of early adulthood. Blending introspective lyricism with shimmering pop production, Viepsa captures the tension between chasing dreams and fearing the future, arriving at a place of gratitude, self-belief, and surrender to the unknown. Anchored by the recurring refrain, “Welcome to the golden hour of your life,” the song is a reminder to embrace the present even amid the chaos of coming of age.

‘Bekadran’ turns heartbreak into a meditation on healing, resilience, and self-worth. Directed and produced by Taahira Bhalla, the track embraces betrayal as a catalyst for growth, urging listeners to let grief wash over them without losing faith in love. Its reflective lyricism and emotional vulnerability position the song as a gentle anthem for anyone learning to choose themselves after disappointment.

‘Ishq Rogue’ reimagines love as both devotion and affliction, drawing on the rich poetic traditions of Punjabi and Urdu to explore the intoxicating ache of yearning. Over a hypnotic electronic backdrop by Skopòs, Viepsa sings of an all-consuming passion that feels like a chronic condition — a ‘rog’ or ailment that persists even as the world falls away. The result is a deeply evocative track that balances vulnerability and intensity, transforming heartache into something almost sacred.

In 2021, Viepsa’s acoustic cover of A.R. Rahman’s ‘Jashn-e-Bahara’ offered many listeners their first introduction to her voice, showcasing her ability to reinterpret a beloved Bollywood classic with remarkable emotional nuance. While far removed from the electronic experimentation and multilingual genre-blending that would later define her more recent and mature original music, this early cover reveals the expressive vocal sensibility at the heart of her sound — a quality that continues to anchor her work even as her sound evolves in increasingly adventurous directions.

Homegrown Music, the next-generation music label and platform by Homegrown in partnership with Atlantic Records, returns with HGM Showcase #002 at The Humming Tree, Bengaluru, on July 18, 2026. MC Couper, a South Indian hip-hop artist known for his sharp lyrics and multilingual flow, will headline the showcase alongside rising singer-songwriter Viepsa Arora and New Delhi-based producer and guitarist Raj Kanwar Sodhi, whose genre-fluid sound blends electronic music, rock, and Indian classical influences. The event continues Homegrown Music’s mission to showcase artists shaping the future of sound in India and South Asia, bringing together some of the country’s most compelling emerging voices at the newly revived Humming Tree, a beloved cornerstone of Bengaluru’s independent music scene.

Follow @viepsa on Instagram.

If you enjoyed reading this, here’s more from Homegrown:

We’re Bringing MC Couper, Raj, & Viepsa To The Humming Tree For A Homegrown Music Showcase

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Homegrown Handpicked: A Playlist Of Our Favourite Releases From June 2026