Dhvani Bhanushali On Her Journey From YouTube To Bollywood: ‘Most Challenging Part Was…’

Transforming from a YouTube sensation to pop royalty almost overnight, the 25-year-old musical sensation, Dhvani Bhanushali, has emerged from humble beginnings to stunning stardom in a remarkably short period. With a repertoire boasting over 50 chart-topping tracks, including the ground-breaking ‘Vaaste’ that broke records as the fastest Indian pop song to hit a billion views on YouTube, Dhvani has firmly established herself as the youngest songstress to achieve such a milestone.

Her meteoric rise was further accelerated by the success of ‘Vaaste,’ propelling her into global fame with its music video securing a place among the Top 10 most-liked videos and earning her a prestigious spot on the YouTube Rewind Global List. Delving beyond her smash hits like ‘Dilbar’ and ‘Duniyaa,’ each making their mark on the Billboard Top 10 and BBC Asian Music Charts, respectively, Dhvani’s entrancing vocals have become synonymous with Bollywood playback singing, gracing a myriad of films across diverse genres and elevating her status as a preeminent voice in the industry.

In an exclusive chat, Dhvani Bhanushali reflected upon her stellar music career, her journey from YouTube to crooning songs for Bollywood films and her future aspirations in this industry.

Here are the excerpts:

Dhvani, your journey from a YouTube prodigy to pop royalty has been phenomenal. Can you share some of the key moments that you feel have defined your career so far?

Thankfully, there have been a lot of key moments that have really defined my career so far. One of them being Vaaste reaching a billion views on YouTube. It was my fourth song and from being a cover artist to having an original pop number do so well, incredibly well rather, I think it was just loved by everybody. I think it’s a great feat for an independent pop artist. There have been a lot of other moments also.It was all over. I think everybody knows about the song and that way I think I’ve been blessed with how people really love my songs. It’s a very surreal feeling when I release something and people give it so much love and connect with me so much. I think I’m really blessed with the people’s love.

Vaaste became a record-breaking sensation, making you the youngest female singer to achieve such a feat. What do you think contributed to its massive success?

Vaste became a record-breaking sensation because of how it’s such a beautiful song, like when you listen to it, you constantly want to keep listening to it. And of course, you know, the video really contributed to it. It was shown so beautifully. And I mean, I have Vinay, Radhika, Afrafat Mehmood to thank for it and also Tanishk Bagchi. It’s just something that is a whole package that you watch and you hear. And even if you just hear, I think it just touches you. Every time I perform the song, I mean, I’ve seen people literally cry and sing those lines extremely loudly with me. And it’s such a surreal feeling for the artist, me. And it’s magical, really.

With over 50 chart-topping hits to your name, which song do you feel represents your musical evolution the best, and why? Your tracks like ‘Dilbar’ and ‘Duniyaa’ have featured on prominent charts like Billboard and BBC Asian Music Charts. How do you stay innovative and keep your music fresh for your audience?

Dil Bar, Duniya, Le Ja Re also I think were in the Billboard charts and BBC Asian Music charts and I mean I just have the people to thank for it. How I keep myself innovative and fresh is I think these are just ideas you know that come to you and how you formulate them of course a lot of hard work goes into it but somehow cosmically also kind of the brain works a certain way and the people that are around the people that I collaborate with also are sort of on the same lines and then something like that just happens and but again while all of this happens and people connect to it there’s also there’s no strategy strategy as such but we always have a conscious thinking of doing something new and something fresh and I think then we just put all our minds and work into it and make it amazing according to our sensibilities and when the people connect to it it’s sort of given it like a tick mark you know that you know this this is something that we love but I always make sure that I’m constantly doing different things I think it just comes from that space.

Can you tell us more about your recent creative ventures, including your new music and your silver screen debut?

I have a lot in pipeline, I think in 2024, and, I mean, I just can’t wait to share my silver screen debut, I think should also happen And again, there’s going to be a new album, and I’m working on a lot of other music. Until then, I think you can all just listen to, Thank you,

God. And, you know, that’s my latest release and it’s done incredibly well, and I’m just thankful of how people have responded to it, and it was everywhere, and I hope the things that i do later this year and the years to follow brings the same amount of love for me and my sliver screen debut as well.

What trends have you noticed in the music industry recently, and how do you think they will shape the future of Indian pop and Bollywood music?

Trends that I’ve noticed in the music industry recently and how I think the shape they will shape the future of indian pop and Bollywood music is people are very open. Nobody really

cares about whether it’s a film song or what genre it is. I think every artist at this point has an audience and few or more. I think everybody wants to connect to the person, the artist and the whole story. And the indian audiences, I think, have really evolved from how it used to be, and I’m really happy. And I think it’s a great time to get into pop or get into hip hop or get into any genre that the artist sort of resonates with and it’s going to really blow up, it already is. I feel like the whole independent side of the music industry is really blowing up.

What do you enjoy doing in your time away from the spotlight? Are there any hobbies or passions you pursue outside of music?

I think time away from music is just lying down, playing with my dog and, you know, watching a few movies, spending time with my family. I’m pretty simple, basic. I like very normal living and, you know, spending time in nature and with my family.

Your social media presence is quite strong. How important do you think it is for artists today to connect with their fans on social media?

My social media presence is quite strong because, I mean, I’m just myself on it. It is very important for artists today to connect with their fans because I think they want to know who you are outside of your music as well, because they want to connect to the whole person over just the songs. And I feel like it’s a great opportunity for us to also build that base, you

know, to have those kind of people. It’s like an extended family. I feel for me, I mean, my dreamers are really important, and I wish, I mean, I share the parts of myself apart from my

music with them. And i make sure that you know they grow along with me over the years.

What has been the most challenging part of your musical journey so far, and how did you overcome it? How do you tackle criticism and trolling that comes your way?

Most challenging part of my musical journey. I wouldn’t call it challenging, but I feel like you constantly have to keep upgrading yourself, and that comes with anything that you do. But if I had to sort of point out an aspect that made me really, you know, I wasn’t comfortable with Radhar I’d just say that the kind of opinions and a lot of opinions on something that you say

or you do, or on a particular event, if you’ve not been feeling up to it, that whole constant constantness of the job of being an artist is something that is challenging sometimes, but it is our life, and we’ve signed up for it, so there’s no way that we can run away from it. I think it’s just, it took me some time to sort of accept that this is my life. And, you know, all of it is rather great but the fact that i have to be on all the time is challenging and you know now we’ve sort of have had a comfort zone around that aspect and it’s fine.

How has the interaction with your fans influenced your work?

Interaction with my fans is, I think, separate from my work. I kind of enjoy talking to dreamers. I feel like there are a bunch of young girls who make these really cool edits of me and listen to my songs and are really in love with me. And I really like interacting with them. We also have a group on Instagram. And sometimes, I mean, periodically I feel like I do engage into conversation with them. And it just makes me happy. (0:33) Like I said, they’re my extended family.

On World Music Day, what are some important life lessons this artform taught over the course of life? And how can one turn to music when everything seems hopeless?

I think important life lessons that I do learn from music is patience and I think love. Love for yourself and how you need to give yourself time to sort of get into the practice and give yourself time to learn and to improve and just have to be there for your art form and for yourself. I feel and how can one turn to music when everything seems hopeless. There is some sort of calm that comes. It’s like a meditation. I don’t know how to explain. Like there’s nothing else that you think when you’re involved completely and immersed into that practice. And I do feel that and right after I feel like the sense of just that everything settled down and everything is just okay, you know, and my mind is calm and I’ve reached a very sweet spot in my head. It’s a very different feeling. I think only musicians would know.

Who will be your dream musicians and singers that you would love to collaborate with this year?

This year, I think collaboration-wise, I’m really open. I really like artists that are budding at this time. But I also do have a list. My favourite is Diljit Dosant. Everyone knows. I really want to get a chance to collaborate with him. And Arijit Singh. I also love Sunidhi ma’am. If an opportunity presents itself, I’d really like to do something with her. In terms of pop.

What are some of your upcoming projects that the fans can look forward to? Whether you are planning to experiment with genres in the coming times?

My upcoming projects this year are really fun. I am also venturing out into different things and really experimenting with genres. My album, the next one is going to be different, more different than Thank You God. And I am just looking at, I am just feeling like there is going to be a lot of support coming its way also. So fingers crossed, let’s see how the people react. But I have definitely decided to follow my heart through everything like I always have. And I am going to be confident about my choices.