By Somya Mandal
NaturoSynth is a Chicago-based Indian-American indie-pop band formed in 2019 that blends alternative, psychedelic, funk, and electronic dance music into a futuristic yet organic sound. The group features writers and producers Arjun and Kieran Gopal, along with Pranav Joshi, Arjun Shamaraya, and Michael Plumridge. Since their formation, they’ve spent nearly seven years building a sound that’s both inventive and rooted in their cultural identity.
There’s something distinctly South Asian about building something big from a basement. For NaturoSynth, that’s exactly where everything started, in the house they grew up in, surrounded by instruments, Google Drive folders, and FaceTime calls that stretched late into the night. No industry machine. No polished launch plan. Just a group of friends who loved making music.
Arjun and Kieran, who lead most of the writing and production, grew up together long before NaturoSynth became a name. Their creative chemistry is rooted in shared history, trust, and years of knowing how the other thinks. Some songs come together in a single session. Others evolve slowly, passed back and forth as demos, layered and reshaped remotely. There’s no fixed formula for things like these, but that’s the whole point.
More Than Just Vibes
When asked whether their music carries a message, the answer isn’t one-note. “It kind of depends on the song,” they explain.
Some tracks unpack relationships. Others sit in nostalgia, that specific kind of ache that hits when you’re balancing who you were with who you’re becoming. There are songs that look toward the future, songs that process everyday struggles. Occasionally, reflections on what’s happening in the world around them.
But at its core, their intention is simple: they want their music to meet people where they are.
As South Asian men in alternative music spaces where there still aren’t many faces that look like theirs, they’re aware that their presence matters. Not in a performative way, but a real one. “Whatever we do… is always kind of representing our people as well.” Sometimes just taking up space is a statement.
Finding Their Sound — And Their Roots
For years, their South Asian identity shaped their instincts without being front and center. You could hear it in subtle ways, from Bollywood-influenced melodic phrasing, rhythm-heavy production, layered percussion echoing Indian music traditions. Rhythm, after all, is foundational in South Asian soundscapes.
“Rhythm is such a big part of Indian music,” they note. “That was instilled in us from a young age.”
But their newest release marks a shift. For the first time, they’ve intentionally woven Indian classical elements into a track by featuring a violinist they’ve known since middle school. The integration didn’t feel forced; it happened naturally through trust and shared history. They’re experimenting thoughtfully, pushing genre boundaries while staying rooted in who they are.
From Perfection to Presence
Nearly seven years into their journey, their biggest lesson isn’t about sound design or production. It’s about courage.
“Don’t be afraid to share your music.”
Early on, they were consumed with making the best music possible, “entranced by the fantasy” of perfect creation. Social media, marketing, sharing consistently, all of that felt secondary. In hindsight, they wish they’d trusted that there was an audience out there waiting. Once they started putting their work out more confidently, the messages came and listeners shared how songs resonated, how lyrics hit at the right moment, how they felt seen. That changed everything.
Why NaturoSynth Matters
NaturoSynth isn’t just a band experimenting with sound. They represent something bigger: South Asian creatives building alternative music on their own terms. Blending nostalgia, vulnerability, and heritage without turning culture into a gimmick. They’re proof that you don’t have to force identity into your art for it to be present. It’s already there, in the rhythm, in the melody, in the basement studio you built at home.
And maybe that’s the real takeaway for a generation of diaspora creatives watching from the sidelines: don't be afraid. Make the music, blend the influences, share it anyway.