‘Bairan’ Hitmakers Banjaare Want Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in Their Music Video

“Bairan” has emerged as a breakout success for the Banjaare duo Sumit and Anuj. The viral hit has dominated streaming charts and sparked countless memes, bringing the cousins into the spotlight. In a conversation with Variety India, the pair talks about the song’s success, the evolving image of Haryanvi music and what comes next.  

Do you feel Haryanvi music is underrated and underexplored? 

Anuj: You can’t call it underrated, but it’s definitely underexplored. Even that’s slowly changing. For instance, “Gypsy” (by GD Kaur) was heard in the Bollywood film Subedaar starring Anil Kapoor (as “Balam Thanedar”). 

Sumit: (The general population) isn’t that familiar with (the folk form of) Haryanvi Ragni. They’ve only heard the songs that have been marketed a lot. With an artist like Masoom Sharma, they mostly know his gangsta rap hits. His tracks like “Baitha Balad Kade Laat Maar Kai Thaya Na Karte”, “Jutiyan Ki Jodi”, and even his recent single “Teri Haan Pe” have only found a niche audience. Similarly, Dhanda Nyoniwala has released the love song “Ishq Bawla.” There are lots of romantic and sad tunes.

What do you think of all the memes that have been generated around “Bairan”?

Sumit: We’re very happy to see them. It’s great! But the song isn’t based on personal experience. We’re inspired by folk stories and by what we observe around us. 

Anuj: We also read a lot of novels. 

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Are you feeling the pressure of success?

Sumit: We were in the beginning. Then my dad phoned and told us to work as if our next five songs had flopped. We were flying high, but that immediately brought us back down to earth.

If you had to cast an actor and actress in your music video, who would you choose?

Anuj: We’re very big fans of Shah Rukh Khan. 

Sumit: We’d cast Kajol and him. But we plan to star in the music videos we’ll make from now on. We’ve got the budget now and a little confidence as well.

You’ve named yourself Banjare, meaning ‘nomads’. What genres are you planning to explore next?

Anuj: We’re focusing on electronic music. That’s the next step. 

Sumit: We’re fusing India and the West to try and create a new soundscape. 

What’s on your playlist?

Anuj: The first five songs on my playlist by Skrillex. There’s “Iss Tarah” by Chaar Diwaari and Sonu Nigam.

Sumit: My playlist has Masoom Sharmaji, Josh Brar, Harkirat Singha and Arjan Dhillon.

What’s next in terms of releases?

Anuj: We have a bank of about five to seven songs, but we’ll be putting them out one by one. 

Sumit: Hopefully, the next track will be released in mid-June.

Any shows in the pipeline?

Sumit: Not yet. We’re putting things together. We don’t want to rush anything just to cash in. We believe in the saying, ‘Sahaj pake so mitha hoy’ (That which ripens naturally turns sweet). We want to create an experience for people.