From a child artist who won hearts on television to a widely recognised digital icon with a massive fanbase across India, Anushka Sen’s rise has been nothing short of phenomenal. After conquering acting, fashion and content creation, the 23-year-old star is now stepping into an entirely new world: music. Anushka is making her much-awaited musical debut with Chameleon, a track that blends her artistic evolution and personal reflections into one powerful visual and sonic journey.
In an exclusive conversation with Hindustan Times, Anushka opens up about how Chameleon was born, creating music with Grammy-winning American music producer Ken Lewis, shooting on the streets of Mumbai, and the emotional, creative grind that went into bringing her first-ever song to life.
“It was a dream come true”: How Chameleon began
“It all actually started last year,” Anushka recalls. “Ken Lewis, who has produced this song and co-written it with me, said that we should work on a track together, and it was such a big honour because he’s someone who has two Grammy Awards and so many platinum records. Being able to create something with him felt like a dream come true.”
The idea behind Chameleon traces back to Anushka’s 15-year-long journey in the entertainment industry. “The song is inspired by the thought that when I started, things were very different. Every new opportunity or challenge required me to adapt and blend into the situation and evolve. That’s why the song is called Chameleon,” she explains.
“Just like a chameleon changes its colour with the atmosphere, all of us adapt to our circumstances in life. As an actor and someone with a filmmaking degree, I knew there had to be a way to bring those visuals alive. When I was younger, music videos meant everything. I’d wait for new YouTube releases. So to finally create one myself for my fans feels surreal.”
On the Korean and Indian influences in her music video
“When I say Chameleon is about life and career, Ken and I were discussing, and he was the one who said, ‘You look different in everything you wear, when you’re in Korea, you blend in there; in India, you look completely Indian in a saree; in America, you look American.’ And I don’t even do that intentionally. It’s just super fun for me to try different styles, and I am somebody who loves fashion and makeup. So for me to be able to change myself and adapt like a chameleon was also a part of the plan.”
She knew early on that her music video needed multiple avatars. “There had to be five personalities, not just Anushka in different outfits,” she says. “We weren’t thinking, ‘This look is Indian’ or ‘This one is Korean.’ For me, the white look felt ethereal and fairy-like. The red was sassy, almost like an assassin. The Indian fusion look took inspiration from home.” As the creative director of the video, Anushka says the styling and conceptualisation were “super fun” and deeply personal.
On shooting on the streets of Mumbai
“I was having the best time ever,” she beams. “We shot for four days, and every day brought a new challenge. It would suddenly start raining, and we’d wait for it to stop. But Mumbai streets are so beautiful, we knew the visuals were worth it.”
The video also features the Mumbai Police and support from various authorities. “It was such a huge honour. The police were lovely and said they wanted to support the video. We had Indian Railways, Maharashtra, everyone backing us. I’m a Mumbaikar at heart, so capturing that essence in the video was a dream come true.”
When asked if her choreography was inspired by that of Like Jeannie, Anushka denied and said that the choreography was crafted by Vartika and Shivanshu. “This is a video where we didn’t take inspiration from any other video. This was just all of us sitting together and wondering what to do. They came up with four hook steps, and we mixed two of them. Some people think the video is inspired by other videos — but honestly, everything came from our own brainstorming sessions. And seeing people recreate the hook step makes me super, super happy.”
On working with Ken Lewis
Working with Ken Lewis was a transformative experience for Anushka. “It was such a dream to work with someone like Ken. He’s such a senior person. He had worked with the biggest names. To even get an opportunity to work with him was really huge. On top of that, writing with him and making music with him and being in studio with him was super special. Those memories I’ll never forget. He’s still so humble, kind and passionate. He’s my biggest cheerleader. There was so much mutual respect — no ego, no clashes. That’s when magic happens. Without Ken, Chameleon wouldn’t exist. I never imagined I’d release my own song.”
Then came the post-production grind. “I was editing at home,” she reveals. “We sat for nine days and spent about 90 hours working. I’m being completely honest, I have BTS footage of all of it. We were figuring out which shots to keep, what to cut. Sometimes we asked our parents not to look, and sometimes we asked for their advice. They even suggested fonts and visual details.”
Her parents’ reaction was the ultimate reward. “They’re the most supportive people ever. When they saw the full music video, they got emotional — and that is priceless for me.”
