Nikhil Chinapa on music, memory, and moving forward

From climbing mango trees in Kodagu to headlining music festivals across India, Nikhil Chinapa’s journey has been anything but ordinary. The DJ, VJ, festival founder, and scuba diver has lived many lives, but through it all, one thing has remained the same: his belief that music is the lifeblood of humanity.

‘MY LATEST TRACK IS INSPIRED BY NEHRU’
Nikhil's latest release; co-produced with frequent collaborator Browncoat, inspired by Jawaharlal Nehru’s iconic ‘Tryst With Destiny’ speech, wasn’t just another experiment. “The crackle of vinyl always moved me,” he recalls. “Nehru’s words carried the same resonance. It wasn’t about being gimmicky—it was about emotion and history,” he says. The connection was deeply personal. His grandfather, a freedom fighter, was imprisoned when Nikhil’s father was born in 1939. “I never met him, but I always pictured him in his Nehru cap. Using those words in my music was my way of honouring that past.” The track pairs Nehru’s speech with the haunting tones of the sarangi. “The sarangi almost sounds like it can talk,” Nikhil says, adding, “When we brought it into the mix, it was magic. We created a layered soundscape that feels alive.”

‘My childhood memories of Coorg are something I cherish’
Every summer, Nikhil would return to his ancestral home in Kodagu, where life was simple but magical. With no electricity, evenings were lit by oil lamps. Days were spent chasing frogs in paddy fields, fishing in streams, and climbing guava and mango trees—sometimes with bamboo sticks fashioned into hooks. Even fetching water was an adventure: riding bullock carts to the well and returning drenched from splashing drums. “You didn’t need much. A stick, a ball, some cousins, and a tree to climb — that was happiness,” he smiles.

‘EVOLUTION IS ALWAYS A GOOD THING’
With more than two decades in the industry, Nikhil has seen music evolve in unimaginable ways — and he embraces it. “Evolution is always positive. Yes, ’80s rock or Goa’s scene in the ’90s may feel different now, but it will still enchant someone discovering it for the first time. True fans always remain,” he says. He laughs, recalling his first Goa trip in 1990, when an old-timer told him it had “already changed”. He says, “That’s the thing—people will always say Goa has changed. But someone discovering it today will say the same thing 10 years later. Change is the only constant.”

‘TV AND SOCIAL MEDIA WILL NEVER SHOW THE WHOLE STORY’
For many, Nikhil will always be MTV’s face. He admits people often ask if his fiery reactions on TV were scripted. “They weren’t. That was me in the moment. What you saw was real—though it was just a slice of the whole picture. TV and now social media will never show the complete story,” he says. On dealing with negativity, he grins, “Was that in my contract — to deal with people’s insecurities?” And on trends like “coffee raves”? He’s blunt. “They’ve got nothing to do with coffee or raving. They’re about Instagram. And that’s fine. If that makes people happy, who am I to judge?”

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