Coming Home to the Self

With “First Love,” Ananya Ashok closes her EP on a note that feels less like a romantic confession and more like a homecoming. Instead of looking outward, the song turns gently inward, reframing “first love” as the act of rediscovering the self that existed before expectation, before pressure, before the weight of being a “promising youngster.”

The most striking element is the seamless fusion of Carnatic Veena and indie-folk textures. The Veena does not sit politely in the background; it breathes, pulses, and leads. At times it feels like a grounding force beneath the airy acoustic layers, at others like a quiet but insistent voice cutting through doubt. The production is restrained and spacious, allowing each note to linger, creating an atmosphere that feels both ancient and startlingly contemporary.

Vocally, Ananya Ashok embraces intimacy over virtuosity. The classical precision she was trained in gives way to a softer, almost conversational tone. It’s this vulnerability that gives the track its emotional power. There is a sense of release here—a shedding of inherited expectations and cultural compartmentalization.

“First Love” ultimately feels like a resolution without neatness. It acknowledges displacement and generational pressure, yet chooses reclamation over resentment. By the final moments, the song doesn’t just resolve the EP; it restores something essential. It’s not about falling in love for the first time—it’s about remembering who you were before you forgot.