Actor, director, and writer Kunal Kemmu has explored storytelling through films and writing, and now he is expressing himself through music. Following the success of his debut independent single Loche last year, he returns with Nindiya, a deeply personal track born out of fatherhood and the intimate moments he shares with his daughter, Inaaya Naumi Kemmu.
Far removed from the quirky energy audiences associate with him for films like Madgaon Express, the Golmaal franchise, Go Goa Gone, Lootcase, and others, Nindiya reveals a softer, more vulnerable side of the multi-hyphenate artist. He says this side emerged naturally rather than through any calculated creative shift.
Music as Freedom and Emotional Honesty
“To be honest, music is freedom in so many ways for everyone,” Kunal says. “It's expression and thought set to rhythm. I have always been instinctive and emotionally honest when writing, composing, or singing, and that's how Nindiya also came to be.” There is no calculation in his tone, no performance of artistic struggle. “I never felt burdened by what people would want from me. It was more about what I want to do and see if others resonate with it too.”
Origins in Bedtime Rituals
The song traces its roots to everyday parenting rituals, storytelling sessions, improvised melodies, and conversations at bedtime with Inaaya. Kunal recalls how the idea first took shape during one such quiet exchange. “I often tell Inaaya stories at bedtime and even sing songs. They’d mostly be lullabies and she would ask me who made that song or what happens in this song. And once, she asked me if I also had made a lullaby and that’s when I promised her I would write and sing one to her. That’s how Nindiya came to be. Whether it would connect universally with others, I wasn’t sure, but I knew that someone out there would connect with it and maybe play it to their children as well.”
Emotional Purity of Parenthood
The actor admits the song was never conceived with commercial expectations in mind. Instead, it emerged from an emotional instinct, a private feeling that gradually transformed into music. “This song came from some of the quietest, most real moments I’ve experienced as a parent. It wasn’t something I set out to write as a song, it was just a feeling that stayed with me. There’s something incredibly pure about the way you comfort your child, the things you hope for them, the dreams you quietly carry. I think that’s what this track holds for me - a small piece of those moments.”
