People are quick to enter and exit love, and even quicker to replace it: Tia Bajpai

Tia Bajpai explores devotion, emotional intensity, and modern relationships in Love Mafia. She discusses revisiting painful feelings, teamwork, and music and storytelling's future while working in several languages.

Over the past decade, the independent music space has not just grown, but quietly redefined how music is created and consumed across the globe. With digital platforms making distribution more accessible, artists today are increasingly releasing singles and albums on their own terms, building audiences without relying entirely on traditional studio systems. Many are also finding opportunities beyond independent music, including in films and other mainstream formats.

In this changing landscape, actor-singer Tia Bajpai’s latest multilingual album Love Mafia is, in her own words, an attempt to “bring back the idea that love is not disposable,” something that “demands courage, patience, and sometimes even pain.” Sung across five languages, the 11-song album explores the deeper, more intense side of love while staying rooted in its emotional complexities. Produced by Prince Romal, the process for Tia also involved the emotional challenge of reliving experiences one would rather leave behind. The album, in many ways, reflects a broader shift where artists are experimenting more freely with form, language and storytelling.

In this conversation with JAIDEEP PANDEY, she discusses the thought behind the album, her view of modern relationships, her approach to collaboration, and how she envisions music and storytelling evolving over time.

Q. ‘Love Mafia’ is a very striking title. What inspired the core idea of portraying love as a ‘mafia’, and what does that metaphor signify for you?

A. The word mafia is usually associated with power, control, loyalty, and a certain unspoken code. And honestly, love is not very different. When you love deeply, you enter a space where logic doesn’t always exist. There is loyalty without contracts, sacrifices without guarantees, and emotions that can both protect and destroy you. That intensity is what inspired the title. Love can nurture you, but it can also demand everything from you. It’s not always gentle, it’s not always kind, but it is always powerful. For me, Love Mafia is about that raw, unapologetic truth of love that people often hesitate to admit. As an actor too, I find myself drawn to these grey emotional spaces, whether in music or on screen.

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Q. You’ve described it as more than just an album, almost like a movement. What kind of emotional or cultural shift are you hoping to create through it?

A. I feel we are living in a time where love has become very convenient. People are quick to enter, quick to exit, and even quicker to replace. There is very little depth left. Through Love Mafia, I wanted to bring back the idea that love is not disposable. It demands courage, patience, and sometimes even pain. If this album can make even a few people pause and reflect on what love really means to them, then I think it has done its job. It’s about reminding people that real emotions cannot be fast-forwarded or skipped. That same philosophy is what excites me about acting on OTT as well, because long-format storytelling allows you to sit with emotions, not rush through them.

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Q. How would you describe the sound of ‘Love Mafia’? Would you place it in global pop, or see it as rooted in Indian melody?

A. I think it lives somewhere in between, and that’s what makes it exciting. The sound is global in its production, but the soul is deeply Indian. There is a certain emotional texture in Indian music that comes from our culture, our poetry, our way of feeling things deeply. We didn’t want to lose that. So while the soundscape may feel international, the emotion, the expression, the heart of it, it is very much rooted here. That balance is something I also look for in my acting choices now, especially in OTT where you can blend realism with scale.

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Q. How would you describe Prince Romal’s creative process? Was it more structured, or did it allow room for creative freedom and experimentation?

A. Prince has this rare balance where he knows exactly what he wants, but he also allows space for the artist to breathe. There is structure, but it doesn’t feel restrictive. It feels like a foundation you can build on. There were moments where we followed a clear direction, and there were moments where we just let the music guide us. That freedom is very important because that’s where the magic happens. You can’t manufacture emotion, you have to allow it. It’s very similar to acting, honestly. The best performances come when you stop trying to control everything and just live the moment.

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Q. As the album spans multiple languages including English, Hindi, Swahili, Korean, and Latin, how did you maintain emotional consistency across such diverse linguistic expressions? Does working across these languages reshape the way you approach voice, emotion and creativity as an artist?

A. Language changes, but emotion doesn’t. That was our anchor. Whether I was singing in Hindi or Korean, the feeling had to remain honest. Each language has its own rhythm and personality, so naturally your voice adapts, your pronunciation changes, even your energy shifts slightly. But the intention behind the line remains the same. In fact, working across languages made me more aware of how universal emotions are. You realise that love, heartbreak, longing, they sound different, but they feel exactly the same. It also opens you up as an actor, because you start understanding emotion beyond words.

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Q. What do you think is the biggest misconception about being an independent artist today?

A. That it is easy. People see freedom and they think it’s glamorous. But independence comes with responsibility. You are your own support system, your own decision-maker, your own risk-taker. There is no safety net. Every choice matters. It’s liberating, but it’s also demanding. The biggest misconception is that independence means ease. It doesn’t. It means ownership. And that ownership extends across everything I do now, whether it’s music or the kind of acting projects I choose, especially in the OTT space.

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Q. In your opinion, what gives an album its unique power as a format compared to a standalone song?

A. An album allows you to tell a story over time. A song is a moment, but an album is a journey. It gives you the space to explore different emotions, different shades, different perspectives. With Love Mafia, each track is like a chapter, and together they create a larger narrative. That continuity is what makes albums special. It’s immersive. It’s very similar to a series format on OTT, where characters evolve slowly and you get to experience their layers.

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Q. How do you see the independent music industry evolving over the next decade, particularly with the rise of global collaborations?

A. I think we are moving towards a space where boundaries will matter less and authenticity will matter more. Artists will collaborate across countries, cultures, and languages without hesitation. The audience is already global. They are open, they are curious. The independent space will only grow stronger because artists now have the tools to reach people directly. The next decade will be about voices that are honest, not just loud. And I feel this will reflect strongly in OTT content as well, where stories are becoming more real, more layered, and less formula-driven.

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Q. Having returned to the screen after more than three years, which song from the album was the most emotionally challenging for you?

A. There was one track that required me to revisit a very vulnerable space within myself. It wasn’t about technique, it was about honesty. Sometimes you have to relive emotions you would rather move on from. That’s the difficult part. But at the same time, it is also very cathartic. It reminds you why you became an artist in the first place. That same vulnerability is what I am enjoying exploring again through acting, especially with OTT where performances feel more intimate and real.

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Q. The album speaks about love in terms of loyalty and emotional courage. Do you feel modern relationships are moving away from these values?

A. I think people still want those values, but they are afraid of them. Loyalty and emotional courage require vulnerability, and vulnerability is uncomfortable. It’s easier to stay guarded. But real connection cannot exist without risk. So yes, maybe we are moving away from it in practice, but the desire for it is still very much there. That’s something I would love to explore more as an actor too, characters that reflect this emotional conflict of modern relationships.

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Q. Having worked in both Bollywood and now on an international project, what differences did you observe in the creative process and working culture?

A. The biggest difference is in the approach to collaboration. Internationally, there is often a very open exchange of ideas. There is less hierarchy and more conversation. Bollywood, on the other hand, has its own structure and legacy, which also has its strengths. Both spaces have their own rhythm. As an artist, you learn to adapt, but you also take the best from both worlds. Today, with OTT platforms, that gap is slowly bridging, and that’s an exciting space to be in.

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Q. What’s next for you in your musical journey as a singer, and what directions are you most excited to explore?

A. I want to keep exploring. That’s the only constant. I don’t want to be confined to one sound or one identity. Music is too vast for that. I’m excited about collaborations, about experimenting with new sounds, and about telling stories that connect with people on a deeper level. At the same time, I’m equally excited about acting again, especially OTT shows. It’s a space where you can take risks, play layered characters, and really grow as a performer. For me, it’s all connected. Music, acting, storytelling… it’s all just different forms of the same expression.