K-pop fans often find fault in many artists for not giving credit to the original source where necessary. However, Stray Kids’ leader Bang Chan stood on business when he confirmed that his group’s latest full length-album “KARMA” and its lead hip-hop single “Ceremony” was inspired by Bollywood or Indian music.

Quite a few times, the JYP Entertainment boy group has submitted to the ‘Desi agenda’ by mentioning the South Asian country or its food. The latest big surprise for Indian fans came this week, when the K-pop group’s leader and his fellow member Hyunjin stepped out for promotions for their latest comeback.

As part of the long series of variety show outings and other appearances that may be lined up on their schedule after dropping the album “Karma,” one of their first stops was the KBS web show “NOPOGY,” which aligns with the vision “NO-giving-up Old-eatery Tour.” The show is hosted by MONSTA X’s leader Shownu (who in this ‘Multiverse of K-pop Madness’ once shared a dorm with Bang Chang during their trainee days) and NCT’s Jungwoo. The variety series’ concept entails that the K-pop hosts and their guests of the day dine at a top-secret eatery.

Stray Kids on Nopogy Episode 23

When all four idols – Shownu, Jungwoo, Bang Chan and Hyunjin – were finally together at the scene and sat down for a meal, the guests were asked a bunch of questions in a candid interview session. The unfolding interactions thereafter disclosed some long-shared friendships and other tidbits that fans may have never heard of before.

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One such confession during “NOPOGY” Episode 23 involved the hosts discussing Stray Kids’ signature sound. While Jungwoo initially relied on the adjective “spiciness” to describe the guest boy group’s music, he eventually turned to the Stray Kids duo in front of him, questioning them about the vibe of their brand-new single “Ceremony.”

Instead of resorting to the same “spiciness” quotient, Bang Chan said their latest comeback reflected more of “an intoxicating taste.” Hyunjin then called it a “tipsy vibe… Kind of like champagne, maybe it’s the party vibe.”

Stray Kids’ Bang Chan confirms ‘Karma’ was inspired by Bollywood, Indian music

The group’s leader eventually noted, “It feels like being tipsy and having fun.” Confirming that they did not falter in delivering the same intensity as always. He then revealed that the genre they picked this time was “Bollywood.”

“Yeah, I took inspiration from Indian music and tried it out. Since it had a new kind of colour, I really wanted to try it,” he said. When asked if all eight members of the group decided the choice of genre amongst themselves, Chan confirmed that it was just their own decision to go this way. Thinking, “let’s try this kind of thing,” Stray Kids just went along with it. “If there’s a certain vibe we have in mind, we get a track that matches it or we listen through prepared tracks until one feels like ‘This is it,'” he explained.

Further detailing what listening to their new track demo felt like, Bang Chan went on, “So when we heard this one, we were like, ‘Wait, this is Bollywood?’ ‘Have we ever done Bollywood before?’ ‘It’s good though, let’s give it a try.’ And that’s how it came to be.”

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The title “Karma” itself originates from Sanskrit, the ancient language of India. Explaining the connection between the album and the lead single, Bang Chan added, ‘Karma’ means consequences, and it carried the idea that all the effort and hardship we’ve put in come back as good karma. So we hold a ‘Ceremony.'”

Bang Chan, a South Korea-born Australian, once shared during a VLive broadcast that he used to have a lot of Indian friends in Australia. He’s detailed the account on multiple accounts, expressing his affinity for Indian food, which on one occasion, he shared with one of his old pals at the time. During a years-old interview with Rolling Stone India, Stray Kids’ Felix, who is of Korean descent but was born in Australia, also expressed a similar sentiment about Indian food, saying he “tried a lot of spices and curry in Australia!”

On top of that, an unprecedented crossover moment resulted in Anupama, a popular Hindi TV drama series, featuring Stray Kids’ “Chk Chk Boom” choreography onscreen. The yesteryear jaw-dropping cameo was made possible all thanks to actor Aurra Bhatnagar, who is one of many A-list fans of the idol group.

“KARMA” is Stray Kids’ fourth studio album, and it serves as the 11-track follow-up to December’s “Hop” mixtape. As always, the tracklist is fully produced by the boy group’s production team 3RACHA, aka members Changbin, Han and Bang Chan. The “Ceremony” music video is now out on YouTube, while the full-length album is streaming across music platforms.