See Mumbai Pop Artist Kovsky’s Hypnotic Video for New Single ‘Lonely’
The track and clip address substance abuse and mental health issues
Mumbai artist Kovsky. Photo: Courtesy of the artist
Mumbai pop artist Aashna Gulabani aka Kovsky first began singing before speaking, according to her mother. “I don’t believe her,” says Kovsky. The classically trained pianist – who takes her stage name from Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – always dreamt of becoming a singer and never stopped pursuing that goal. “I was scared at first, but I started off small by performing at open mics,” she says. It was after releasing her 2018 debut single “Chameleon” which obtained some traction online that got the ball rolling. She says, “I gained some confidence and began my musical journey from there.”
Kovsky’s latest offering, the immersive “Lonely,” has been produced by Australian artist Soft Nylon. The track which pays homage to the TV show Euphoria touches upon substance dependence and mental health issues. “If you take the whole song literally, then you could think of it as a love letter to a person, but it isn’t about a person,” says Kovsky. The artist explains that the song is penned from an addict’s point of view and talks about how it’s easy to resort to substances if it makes you feel a “little bit less lonely.” She adds, “It speaks about the euphoria and the power you experience doing something that is detrimental to your well-being and surviving it for a second.”
The track’s accompanying video – shot by Muhammad Khatri and Puneet Shewaramani – adds to the message of the song, drawing visual cues from the TV show as well. On-screen we see the musician attending a party and drinking straight out of a bottle only to find herself alone by the end of the night. “Society makes depression look so beautiful and artistic when it’s none of that because depression is a serious illness,” says Kovsky. She adds, “The glitter under my eyes and along my cheekbones are supposed to symbolize tears that were made to look beautiful and artistic by society.”
While in quarantine Kovsky has been keeping busy with her university work, writing a thesis and has also been working on more music. The musician already has a couple of tracks being mixed which she hopes to release soon. “I’m also currently doing a music production course and learning my way around [music software] Logic,” says Kovsky.
Watch the video for “Lonely” below:
