Sahil Samuel, known to his fans as Naalayak, has earned a reputation for turning emotions into indie anthems like Zakir, Baawra, and Haan Pyaar Hai. But with Marammat — his latest album, named after the Urdu word for “repair” — the Chandigarh-born pop-rock artiste has stepped into his most vulnerable creative phase. He says the eight-song album emerged from a period of personal low.

“Marammat was shaped during a deeply personal phase where I was carrying a quiet weight within myself. There was no single trigger, just a gradual distancing from my own emotional centre. Writing Marammat became an act of slowing down and turning inward. Each song allowed me to sit with uncertainty, acknowledge vulnerability, and gently restore parts of myself I hadn’t realised needed care,” he tells mid-day.