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GAAYATRI is a Musical Artist and Composer specializing in the genres of Indian classical, and Indian influenced music.
In the Indian classical world, she is a trained Hindustani Vocalist hailing from the Rampur Maihar-Senia Gharana. She trained under the Late Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. She began her studies with him in the traditional Guru-Shishya parampara at the age of 4, and studied with him until the age of 18 until his passing. GAAYATRI is the first pure vocalist of this lineage of music since the time of Mian Tansen’s daughter Saraswati since the 16th century. She was trained specifically and extensively by her Guru to represent this rare vocal music in its most authentic form, which has been stewarded thus far by the great instrumentalists of the Maihar gharana including Ustad Allauddin Khan, Pt. Ravi Shankar, Smt. Annapoorna Devi, and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan himself. She had the fortunate of singing for Smt. Annapoorna Devi, and receiving her blessing that her presentation is authentic to the tradition and lineage of music taught by Ustad Allauddin Khan. The Gayaki is characterized by integrated Dhrupad, Khyaal, and Beenkar elements in the elaboration, with an overarching emphasis on tonal purity. GAAYATRI’s repertoire consists of Dhrupad, Khyaal, Tarana, Light Classical, and Regional Folk sung in this unique Maihar vocal style.
With her Guru's blessings, she became a performing artist by the age of 7, and a professional touring classical vocalist at the age of 18. She has given numerous live performances in the US as well as India, notably as an invited guest performer at the ITC Sangeet Research Academy, was a featured performer at the annual Jaipur Literature Festival, and most recently was a featured soloist in the Festival of Tabla held in Los Angeles. She has also released a number of classical albums featured on Spotify, Apple Music, and all major DSPs.
Living in America and coming from this special heritage, she wanted to be a part of the mainstream music industry without compromising her roots. Eventually, she found a niche as a specialist for creating Indian influenced music, blending Indian classical elements with commercial genres.
Noting her unique vocal texture and Indian music expertise, she was discovered by Hollywood. Her voice has been featured in Film, TV, and Media projects such as Marvel Studios’ Ms. Marvel, ZeeTV’s Taj: Royal Blood voicing the character Anarkali played by Aditi Rao Hydari, League of Legends’ Nilah’s Theme, Disney’s Million Dollar Arm, DreamWorks’ Hundred Foot Journey, and Imagine Entertainment’s Pelé: Birth of a Legend, lending depth and emotion to some of the most iconic moments in film and television. She was also hand picked to sing with A-list artists Camila Cabello, Billie Eilish, PHINNEAS, Justin Timberlake, Jared Leto, 30 Seconds to Mars, Carlos Santana, and Angelique Kidjo.
As a Composer, she has contributed original music scoring for film, television, and digital media. She specializes in blending Indian music with cinematic music to create unique Indian influenced soundtracks. She started her career in media music working as a studio assistant to AR Rahman on projects such as Alia Bhat’s breakout film Highway, the Late Sridevi’s film MOM, and Mani Ratnam’s Chekka Chivanta Vaanam. She has since worked on her own projects scoring films Mysore Magic, Mirage/Maya, and music directing a Telugu language series Dallas Diaries. She was also the lead orchestrator for Season 2 of Disney Jr.'s first South Asian show Mira Royal Detective. Her scored Indian influenced choral works are widely performed by choral groups such as the National Children’s Chorus, Tonality, Washington DC’s Congressional Chorus, and Long Beach Camerata. Her piece “Pani Ka Rang” was premiered at the Lincoln Center, and her piece “Diya Jalein” was premiered at Carnegie Hall receiving a standing ovation.
As a Musical Artist, she has contributed original songs that feature her multilingual songwriting in Telugu, Hindi, and English. Taking inspiration from her time in the Pop world, she stepped up 20 feet to create a signature blend of Indian music with Pop to create a unique style of Desi Pop. Her original song “Neelo Nennunnana” is featured in the upcoming series, Dallas Diaries. Her original song "Suno Apni Awaaz" was featured in Disney's series Shake Your Tail With Chip 'n Dale, garnering over a quarter million views within a few short weeks of release.
From her background in Hindustani classical music, she deeply believes in the power of music as a form of sonic yoga and strongly believes the music we absorb has a profound effect on mental health and well-being. She therefore takes it as a responsibility to make music that is uplifting, healthy, and high vibrational with a Saatvik quality for the spiritual benefit of all.
