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Antariksh frontman Varun Rajput excited about his upcoming album: ‘All of this is me’
Delhi-based musician Varun Rajput explains how his latest release and the upcoming album draw from lived experiences.
For Varun Rajput, frontman and singer-guitarist of New Delhi-based rock act Antariksh, music has always been closely tied to lived experience. “I enjoy writing what comes from within,” he says, adding that many of his songs are shaped by emotions he has either felt himself or deeply empathised with. That approach sits at the core of Udaan, a song he describes as being rooted in “finding the courage and taking that plunge for the first time.”
The song arrived at the end of 2025, right after a successful US tour and sets the tone for the year ahead. “The starting of the journey is always full of excitement,” Rajput explains, and that sense of optimism drives the pop-rock single, which celebrates hope, courage and the joy of chasing dreams. True to the band’s identity, the song leans on hummable melodies while comfortably slipping beyond rigid genre boundaries.
Udaan is part of an ambitious 12-track concept album titled Rehguzar, which traces the emotional arc of anyone who chooses the road less travelled. The idea took shape during a moment of reflection at home.
“I was sitting with a cup of coffee in my living room, and I had around 50-odd songs. Some sounded very John Mayer-ish, some were super prog metal, Dream Theater-esque. I kept asking myself, where do these fit? And then I realised—all of this is me,” he recalls.
That realisation became the backbone of the album. Placed early in the tracklist, Udaan represents the first leap. “It’s a tribute to artists, entrepreneurs—anyone who’s taken that road less travelled. It’s about finding the courage and just jumping,” he says adding that even before writing it, he knew the sonic direction. “It had to feel happy and driven—starting from a punk rock space and then naturally moving into pop rock,” he adds.
The song also mirrors his own life choices. An engineering graduate from Delhi College of Engineering, Varun spent three years in management consulting before stepping away in 2012. “Music had taken a backseat. I was doing fairly well in the corporate world, but I really just wanted to write an album. I told myself if it didn’t work out, I’d come back. Thankfully, I’ve not had to go back," he says, with a smile on his face.
Along the way, Antariksh have also shared stages and studios with global names. In 2021, Varun collaborated on Quest with legendary guitarist Marty Friedman, a partnership he will revisit later this month when the former Megadeth guitarist returns to the Capital for a show.
Shaped by influences ranging from Bryan Adams and Whitesnake to Rage Against the Machine and Hindustani classical music, Udaan becomes both personal confession and shared emotion. “Whether I like it or not, whatever I listen to seeps into my compositions,” Varun concludes.
