Gen-Z Finds Solace in Timeless Ghazals

In her Mumbai apartment late at night, Mansvi Saxena (20) plays Mehdi Hassan’s ghazal Mujhe Tum Nazar Se, a song her mother once played on repeat after losing her father. On a long bus ride, Saahil Thakkar (21) lets Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s ghazals fill the four-hour journey. What played as background music in their childhood homes is now becoming a go-to voice and music of inheritance for many Gen-Zers. A growing number of Gen-Z listeners are swapping quick playlists for the unhurried charm of ghazals and retro Bollywood songs; music that carries memory, detail, and emotion across generations.

Timeless Notes

Singer and composer Nisschal Zaveri (35) has seen it firsthand. “Ghazals were always played in my home, alongside Indian classical music. During Covid, my deep love for poetry resurfaced. I rediscovered ghazals with renewed passion. It felt like all the stars aligned.” For him, the form’s power comes from simplicity. “In ghazals, the poetry must take precedence. The music should be like a simple bindi, just enough to enhance the beauty without overshadowing it.”

For younger listeners, the path to old music often begins in small, everyday moments. Mansvi remembers the FM radio shaping the soundtrack of her childhood — bhajans in the morning, new releases in the day, and older film songs at night. Over time, she found herself drawn to the sound of the ’70s. “This is the music that is present in my youth, just as it was in theirs. It has the potential to connect to any generation of people, giving it a heart to listen.”

Some songs become personal markers of memory. Saahil grew up surrounded by old compilations on cassettes. “We had cassettes of old Hindi song compilations.” His deeper connection came later, in college, when a friend would play ghazals on Spotify jam sessions — long, meditative pieces that at first seemed out of place but eventually made sense. “You listen to it a couple of times and you're like, you know what, there is a place for this.”

For Saahil, ghazals are best experienced late at night or early in the morning, when the world feels still. “The length of the songs is very interesting. You can let the song come into its own.”

The Sound of Music

From the industry’s side, there’s an understanding of why younger listeners are tuning into old songs. Ashutosh Sharma, founder of Amarrass Records, feels the resurgence of ghazals and folk traditions among younger audiences is less of a surprise and more of a return to the natural order. “People want something real that is alive, unplanned, thought-provoking and not just surface-level entertainment. That’s why there’s a comeback of analogue records, old shayari, and Ghalib.”

The appeal of ghazals and old songs lies in their complete experience. “It’s the poetry, the rendition, and the way the artist inhabits the words. That combination can move people even if they’ve never heard the song before,” Sharma says. He’s seen audiences respond even when the language is unfamiliar. The emotion of the poetry, carried by the artist’s rendition, cuts through language. You don’t have to understand every word to be moved. While family often plants the first seeds of musical taste, Sharma believes it’s “the friends and spaces you find later that expand your exposure. The ecosystem matters.”

The discovery often happens online. Saahil recalls finding a Jeff Buckley cover of Ye Jo Halka Halka by Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan through a reel and instantly seeking out the full track. Zaveri shares that “Two-line shers have a natural virality online, but the intimacy of a mehfil or baithak offers a depth and connection no screen can replicate.”

For Mansvi, certain songs speak directly to her thoughts. She points to Jane Kya Sochkar from Kinara as a favourite. “I think the song is perfectly and reasonably sad… the idea being that isolation isn’t unique to you, but even knowing that, the personal experience of it still feels unbearably slow and heavy.”

Back To Classics

Choosing this music, for some, is a way of stepping outside the current pop landscape. It is a little bit of a rebellion against today's pop culture. Saahil says, “We need to preserve our history, our shared South Asian history, and not let political conflicts ruin our culture, our shared cultural backdrop.”

Both Zaveri and Sharma believe the revival is here to stay. Sharma says, “You’ll see more kids writing poetry, exploring meanings, and keeping the tradition alive, in both traditional and contemporary forms.” Zaveri hopes his work is part of that process. “Through my performances, I hope I’m planting seeds in the hearts of the next generation, seeds that will inspire them to explore, cherish, and carry this tradition forward.”

As long as love, loss, and longing remain part of human life, the unhurried beauty of ghazals and the elegance of old film music will keep crossing generations. “They magnify what we feel and give those emotions a voice,” says Zaveri. For today’s young listeners, that voice is no longer just an echo from the past. It is a part of their own soundtrack, carrying memories, emotions, and a sense of belonging that feels timeless.