Arjuna Harjai

Arjuna Harjai is an Indian composer, singer and record producer based in the United Kingdom, working across Bollywood, independent music and advertising. Early in his career he composed "O Soniye" for the film Titoo MBA, featuring Arijit Singh in one of his early collaborations. A recipient of the Creative ABBY Awards Gold for original background score, he is known for his longstanding association with director Nikkhil Advani, his viral "The One Minute Composer" series, and collaborative work with international artists including Machel Montano, Rashmeet Kaur and Natasha Noorani. His work has been featured in Rolling Stone India, NDTV, The Times of India and BBC Asian Network, where "Zikar Hai" marked his debut as Introducing Artist of the Week in 2024. His singles "Kaajal" and "Ludhiyane Waleya" (2026) were subsequently featured on BBC Asian Network. He holds the UK Global Talent Visa under the Exceptional Talent category, endorsed by Arts Council England, recognising his contribution to the South Asian music scene in the United Kingdom.

Early life and education

Harjai was born in Delhi and began learning Hindustani classical music from his parents at a young age, gaining early exposure to a wide range of musical styles. He moved to Mumbai in 2006 to study further under playback singer Suresh Wadkar. He studied piano as his primary instrument, completing Grade 8 in western classical and jazz piano at the Delhi School of Music. In 2008 he graduated from SAE Institute, Mumbai, as the highest scorer in Audio Engineering. In 2009 he studied jazz and counterpoint composition under various music exchange programmes in Delhi and Mumbai.

Career

Early career

While composing advertising jingles for major brands, Harjai assisted music composer Lalit Pandit on projects including Besharam and Dabangg. He began composing for cinema when Punjabi producer Rajan Batra sought a new composer for his feature film Titoo MBA. Harjai composed the entire soundtrack, including "O Soniye", which featured Arijit Singh and Vibha Saraf. By 2022 he had composed over 500 advertising jingles and music for more than a dozen feature films. Over the course of his career in advertising and films, Harjai has worked alongside renowned lyricists including Gulzar and Irshad Kamil.

Breakthrough

Harjai's association with director Nikkhil Advani on the film Guddu Engineer and television series P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke brought him critical recognition. For P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke, Harjai composed the original score across 107 episodes and wrote six songs, lending his voice to all of them alongside Nandini Srikar, Shashaa Tirupati, Jonita Gandhi and Surabhi Dashputra. He also composed three songs, the background score and trailer soundtracks for Advani's Lucknow Central, starring Farhan Akhtar and directed by Ranjit Tiwari.

UK relocation and independent work

In 2021 Harjai relocated to the United Kingdom, initially on a dependent visa while his wife pursued a postgraduate degree. During this period he founded Aart Sense Records, an independent record label based in the UK, and continued composing remotely for Indian film and television while expanding his output as an independent artist. In 2023 he collaborated with Sounds of Isha, the music wing of Sadhguru's Isha Foundation, alongside international artists including Machel Montano, Marge Blackman and Sandeep Narayan, to create the Save Soil and Come Awake anthems in support of the Save Soil environmental movement.

Harjai manages several YouTube channels. "Arjuna Harjai" serves as his official artist channel, attached to his profile as a musician, a role it has held since 2022 when he moved his personal vlog content to a separate channel, "Arjuna & Divya Vlogs", which he runs alongside his wife and has accumulated over 160,000 subscribers.

The One Minute Composer (2024)

In 2024 Harjai launched a creative project titled "The One Minute Composer", in which he composed and released tracks based on random prompts, each produced within a minute. The series included "Winter Ayun Waliye", "Mangoge Na" and "Zikar Hai", with all three reaching Spotify's Viral 50 charts. "Zikar Hai" was a collaboration with international artist Natasha Noorani, recorded remotely between Harjai in the UK and Noorani in Lahore. The song marked Harjai's debut on BBC Asian Network, where he was named Introducing Artist of the Week in 2024.

Pyaar De Rang EP (2024)

Later in 2024 Harjai released the EP Pyaar De Rang, a collaborative project featuring Rashmeet Kaur, Natasha Noorani, JJ Esko and Surabhi Dashputra, released through Aart Sense Records.

2025–2026 releases

In February 2025 Harjai released "Kaajal", which was featured on BBC Asian Network. Later that year he released "Karigar" with Surabhi Dashputra in October, followed in November by "Only You" featuring Neha Karode and in December by "Only You (Her)" featuring Arunima Sharma. In January 2026 he released "Tu Hi Hai Channa" with Surabhi Dashputra, followed in February 2026 by "Ludhiyane Waleya", also with Surabhi Dashputra, with lyrics by Geet Sagar. "Ludhiyane Waleya" was featured on BBC Asian Network in March 2026.

Global Talent Visa

In a significant milestone for his international career, Harjai was granted the UK Global Talent Visa under the Exceptional Talent category, endorsed by Arts Council England. The visa is awarded to individuals recognised as leaders or emerging leaders in the cultural and creative sectors, and represents formal acknowledgement by the UK government of Harjai's contribution to the international music industry.

Harjai spoke about the achievement in an interview with BBC Asian Network presenter Preeti Kullar, reflecting on his journey from Delhi to becoming an established artist and record label founder based in the UK. The recognition places him among a select group of South Asian artists to have received the designation.

International collaborations

Year Title Artists Organisation 2022 Come Awake Arjuna Harjai, Machel Montano Sounds of Isha 2022 Soil Song Arjuna Harjai, Machel Montano, Marge Blackman Sounds of Isha 2024 Zikar Hai Arjuna Harjai, Natasha Noorani Aart Sense Records

Extended plays

Year Title Artists Label 2024 Pyaar De Rang Arjuna Harjai feat. Rashmeet Kaur, Natasha Noorani, JJ Esko, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records

Singles

Year Title Artists Label Lyricist Notes 2021 Main Janu Na Arjuna Harjai, Jonita Gandhi Sony Music India Surabhi Dashputra 2021 Arjuna's Drone Arjuna Harjai Aart Sense Records 2022 Naa Jao Arjuna Harjai, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records Surabhi Dashputra 2023 Shamil Hoon Arjuna Harjai, Divya Harjai Aart Sense Records Arjuna Harjai 2023 Jhoothe Arjuna Harjai, Jyotica Tangri Aart Sense Records Jyotica Tangri 2023 Kharaab Arjuna Harjai, Jyotica Tangri Aart Sense Records Jyotica Tangri 2024 Winter Ayun Waliye Arjuna Harjai, Jyotica Tangri Aart Sense Records Geet Sagar The One Minute Composer series; Spotify Viral 50 2024 More Sajan Arjuna Harjai, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records Surabhi Dashputra The One Minute Composer series 2024 Kyu Bhag Gayi Tu Arjuna Harjai, Anubhav Suman Aart Sense Records Arjuna Harjai 2024 Bharam Arjuna Harjai Aart Sense Records Surabhi Dashputra The One Minute Composer series 2024 Mangoge Na Arjuna Harjai Aart Sense Records Surabhi Dashputra The One Minute Composer series; Spotify Viral 50 2024 Kinaare Arjuna Harjai, Shreya Jain Aart Sense Records Arjuna Harjai The One Minute Composer series 2024 Challeya Ve Arjuna Harjai Aart Sense Records Kumaar 2024 Zikar Hai Arjuna Harjai, Natasha Noorani Aart Sense Records Geet Sagar The One Minute Composer series; Spotify Viral 50; BBC Asian Network debut 2024 Rehn De Arjuna Harjai, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records Surabhi Dashputra The One Minute Composer series 2025 Kaajal Arjuna Harjai Aart Sense Records Priyanka R Bala Featured on BBC Asian Network 2025 Karigar Arjuna Harjai, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records Priyanka R Bala 2025 Only You Arjuna Harjai, Neha Karode Aart Sense Records Priyanka R Bala 2025 Only You (Her) Arjuna Harjai, Arunima Sharma Aart Sense Records Priyanka R Bala 2026 Tu Hi Hai Channa Arjuna Harjai, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records Priyanka R Bala 2026 Ludhiyane Waleya Arjuna Harjai, Surabhi Dashputra Aart Sense Records Geet Sagar Featured on BBC Asian Network (March 2026) 2026 Chitthi Arjuna Harjai, Aart Sense Records Surabhi Dashputra Featured on Spotify's New Music Friday I-Pop

Filmography

Year Title Notes 2011 Hair Is Falling Score 2012 Manzoor Nahi Song composed in response to the 2012 Delhi gang rape 2013 Calapor Songs and score; also sang two songs 2014 Titoo MBA Songs and score, including "O Soniye" featuring Arijit Singh 2014 Chudail Music by 2016 Do Lafzon Ki Kahani Composed song "Ankhiyaan" 2016 Guddu Engineer Songs and score 2016 P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Songs, opening theme and score 2017 Mahi NRI Music by 2017 Jindua Composed "Laaiyan Ve" and "Takdi Ravan" 2017 Lucknow Central 3 songs, score and promos 2019 Judgemental Hai Kya Song: "Kis Raste Hai Jana" 2019 Motichoor Chaknachoor Song: "Choti Choti Gal" 2020 Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare Songs: "Neat Ve" and "Bimari"

Awards and critical reception

Award Production Director Details Year 5th Mumbai Shorts International Film Festival P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Nikkhil Advani Original Background Score – Rab Ki Baatein 2017 Creative ABBY Awards – Bronze P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Nikkhil Advani Original Background Score – Raahiyan Ve 2017

Songs

Film Song Singer Lyricist Year Manzoor Nahi P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Rab Ki Baatein Arjuna Harjai Kumaar 2016 P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Raahiya Surabhi Dashputra & Shashaa Tirupati Kumaar 2016 P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Dhaage Arjuna Harjai & Nandini Srikar Kumaar 2016 P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Akhari Mod Pe Arjuna Harjai Kumaar 2017 P.O.W. - Bandi Yuddh Ke Ishq Hawa Hai Arjuna Harjai Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Mera Mahi NRI Kailash Kher Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Tere Bina Master Saleem & Shipra Goyal Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI One More Thumka Jonita Gandhi & Anubhav Suman Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Blonde Nachdi Hardy Sandhu & Jonita Gandhi Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Bathroom (Rap) Hardy Sandhu Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Balle Balle Hardy Sandhu Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Tabbar Lehmber Hussainpuri & Hardy Sandhu Kumaar 2017 Mahi NRI Tere Bina (Reprise) Hardy Sandhu Kumaar 2017 Jindua Takdi Ravan Jonita Gandhi, Akhil & Arjuna Harjai Kumaar 2017 Jindua Laaiyan Ve Arjuna Harjai & Surabhi Dashputra Kumaar 2017 Lucknow Central Teen Kabooter Divya Kumar, Mohit Chauhan, Raftaar Kumaar, Raftaar 2017 Lucknow Central Rangdaari Arijit Singh & Arjuna Harjai Kumaar 2017 Lucknow Central Kaavaan Kaavaan Divya Kumar Kumaar 2017