It began as a few lines scribbled into a notebook three years ago. Today, ‘Kalyani’ plays on repeat across phones in India and far beyond.
Sung in Malayalam, the track has been clocking over 5,00,000 daily streams. ‘Kalyani’ basks at the centre of a shifting Indian music landscape, where boundaries between regional and national are dissolving.
The track is the latest smash hit from Money Verse Records (MVR), an independent label founded by Arjun Sunil aka Arjn, a 24-year-old physiotherapist from Thrissur, and Kiran Das aka —and KDS, a 27-year-old entrepreneur hailing from Malappuram.
While MVR initially made a splash in the rap scene with hits such as ‘Nera’ and ‘Sheriya’ — that together crossed 20 million streams — ‘Kalyani’ signals an evolution in both sound and intent. The song blends Afro-beats with melodic pop, resulting in a hybrid sound that resists easy categorisation.
The numbers reflect that shift. ‘Kalyani’ climbed into the top 25 of the Spotify Global Viral Chart, reached #35 on Spotify’s Top 200 India, peaked at #3 in the UAE, and continues to average more than half a million streams a day on Spotify alone. On YouTube, both Sheriya and Kalyani have crossed one crore views.
Performed by Arjn, KDS, and the group’s new member, Vishnu V aka Fifty4, a 25-year-old writer and musician from Malappuram, the track was produced by Ron Vinod aka Ronn, a 21-year-old music production graduate from Kottayam. Lyrics were penned by Fifty4 and Suhas Moideen, a 22-year-old master’s student in sound engineering from Thrissur.
MVR’s transition began with ‘Sheriya’, released on August 18, 2025. Performed by Arjn and KDS and produced by Ronn, with lyrics co-written by Suhas, the song marked “a deliberate move away from dark or melancholic themes”.
“We wanted to create something motivational for a new generation,” says Arjn. “We fused West Coast beats with traditional Kerala elements like the chenda and ilathalam, along with folk-style singing and rap.”
Arjn describes Sheriya as an “anthem of self-motivation”. “Try singing it every morning,” he laughs.
That high-energy foundation laid the groundwork for ‘Kalyani’. “We didn’t want to repeat ourselves,” Arjn says. “We didn’t want to do something that was already done.”
Despite being entirely in Malayalam, the song has found listeners far beyond Kerala. “Messages now pour in from cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru,” says KDS.
“More than language, it’s the melody that makes people listen on a loop.”
One particular line — ‘ninte nuna kuzhi kandappo, adivayattil manjulla raathri (when I saw your dimples, a night of snow in my belly)’ — has emerged as the emotional core of the track online. The bit features in thousands of reels and short videos, giving the song a second life across social media.
Arjn says the reception reinforces MVR’s creative philosophy: “Local is the new global.”
Interestingly, the idea of ‘Kalyani’ was sparked three years ago, when Fifty4 jotted an early portion of the lyrics. “It began with an image,” he says, recalling the line ‘avalude karimashi mizhi (her kohl-rimmed eyes)’.
“That imagery stayed with me,” says Fifty4, adding that Suhas later helped develop the song into its final lyrical form.
The track took shape across continents. Arjn worked from Canada, Ronn from London, Suhas from Pune, while Fifty4 and KDS were based in Kerala. To achieve its “rooted yet global” sound, Ronn anchored the song in Afro-beats at a mid-range tempo. “Instrumentation was kept minimal — guitar, piano pads, flute — so the vocals stayed central,” he explains.
Is ‘Kalyani’ hip-hop or pop? Arjn calls it a “mixed” genre. While Afro-beats form its rhythmic spine, the song leans heavily into melody and pop sensibilities.
And who, exactly, is Kalyani? The answer remains intentionally open.
“Kalyani is an imaginary character,” says Fifty4. “Anyone who considers themselves beautiful is Kalyani.” Suhas chips in: “Beauty differs for each of us. The Kalyani in my mind will be different from yours.”
Backed by their loyal ‘MVR Mafia’ fanbase, the team is currently working on official music video that will be out soon.