This week, on our Ladies Special, Mae is joined by Carnatic musician and vocalist Sushma Soma, based in Singapore and Chennai. Sushma opens up about quitting her Big Four accounting job to pursue music full time, her passion for sustainability and the environment, as well as preserving traditional artforms. She even opens up about the often problematic power dynamic between guru and shishya in the Indian classical space. Also, check out her performances from her album, Home, and a new track composed from her own Tamil poetry.

Song List:
Man in Nature (01:44 - 06:55)
Grief (23:37 - 28:34)
Idhuvum Kadandhu Pogum (54:02 - 58:26)
 
Follow Sushma:
Instagram @sushmasaurus
Facebook @sushmamusic

Partners: Shure
The Ladies Special studio sessions were recorded using Shure mics and headphones. So if you think we sound particularly awesome, you now know why. When it matters most to you, rely on Shure to deliver an amazing sound performance, whatever stage you’re on.
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Come be our friend:
Facebook @maedinindia
Instagram @maedinindia
Twitter @maedinindia

CREDITS:
Host: Mae
Twitter: @maebemaebe
Instagram: @maemariyam
Sound Editing & Additional engineering by: Lakshman Parsuram
Episode Mixed & Mastered by: Kartik Kulkarni
Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala
Music Mixed by: Ashyar Bulsara
Recorded at Island City Studios

Ladies Special - Sushma Soma

Whether it’s a shoegaze band from Chandigarh, thrash metal act from Visakhapatnam, rapper from Kashmir, vocal folk quartet from Kohima, Tamil indie pop act from Madurai, or a singer-songwriter from Mussoorie, Maed in India is where you’ll discover it.
Started in 2015, music nerd and ex-radio presenter Mae Mariyam Thomas showcases the best talent coming out of South Asia and its diaspora. 
The show is India’s first indie music podcast and prides itself on being the premier destination for new music, little known stories that give you a peek into the lives of independent musicians, as well as being an ongoing archive of unreleased music never heard before.
“Remember that in the darkest days when everything stopped, you turned to artists.” - Jishnu Bandyopadhyay

Music

Music Interviews

Pulling up at the best station from this nation, we have the Ladies Special coming in with Producer & chillwave, trip hop electronica artist from Delhi, Tarana Marwah aka Komorebi. She’s out with a new record that released in Sept 2023 called The Fall. It was a behemoth multimedia project that was 6 years in the making and includes a 6-song album, a 30-page comic book and music videos made with Epic Games’ Unreal Engine. We talk about how family is our kryptonite and invariably the greatest inspiration for her work; how collaboration, as much as it’s fulfilling can also be intimidating; and whether it’s a soliloquy or an intergalactic sci-fi story every record is autobiographical. Also, Tarana is on the lookout for a good choreographer for her next musical venture. 
 
Song List:
The Fall (01:15 to 06:51)
Watch Out (17:14 to 21:15)
Better Not Bitter (26:30 to 31:57)
I Grew Up (48:22 to 54:11)
 
Follow Komorebi on Instagram 
 
Come be our friend:
Facebook @maedinindia
Instagram @maedinindia
Twitter @maedinindia
 
CREDITS:
Host: Mae
Twitter: @maebemaebe
Instagram: @maemariyam
Producer: Shaun Fanthome, Sean D'mello, Ruchi Sawardekar 
Content & Social Media Manager: Meghna Gulati
Sound Editing & Additional Engineering by: Lakshman Parsuram
Video Editing by: Jishnu Guha
Artwork Design by Alika Gupta
Episode Mixed & Mastered by: Kartik Kulkarni
Music Mixed by: Aria Nanji
Recorded at Island City Studios

Komorebi

Halt all engines! For the 2nd instalment of our #LadiesSpecial, our train has taken us to jazz pop singer songwriter and budding actor Aditi Saigal, aka Dot.. Tune in as we find out about the first song she ever wrote (filled with that glorious youthful angst we know and love), as well as how she began playing piano at age of 6 and composing at the age of 12.  Mae and Aditi bond over their Welsh connection, and she reveals how her return to India led to her first tattoo, the making of a brand new album and acting in Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies. She also performs 3 brilliant unreleased tracks, one of which she wrote 3 days before she came to record with us. 
 
Song List:
Faster (01:26 to 03:55)
What Edie Said (23:52 to 27:33)
Girl’s Night (34:47 to 38:20)
 
Follow Dot. on Instagram 
 
Accompanying artists
Aoife O’ Brian
 
Come be our friend:
Facebook @maedinindia
Instagram @maedinindia
Twitter @maedinindia
 
CREDITS:
Host: Mae
Twitter: @maebemaebe
Instagram: @maemariyam
Producer: Shaun Fanthome, Sean D'mello, Ruchi Sawardekar 
Content & Social Media Manager: Meghna Gulati
Sound Editing & Additional Engineering by: Lakshman Parsuram
Video Editing by: Jishnu Guha
Artwork Design by Alika Gupta
Episode Mixed & Mastered by: Kartik Kulkarni
Music Mixed by: Hersh Desai
Recorded at Island City Studios

Dot.

Choo choo! Yaatri kripya dhyaan dein… Mumbai ki Maed in India Ladies special will be releasing a new episode every week in March, with women who inspire us in all the right ways. Agle station ki tayyaari rakhein.
 
Opening this season is **drumroll** hip hop artist, singer, and metal vocalist: Pratika. She spills the beans about her days growling into a mic when she was barely a teenager for her brother’s band Chronic Phobia, finding her safe place among metalheads, we even talk about Astrobiology and the Search for Extraterrestrial Life, as well as how her music channels a powerful feminine rage.
 
Song List (Audio):
Ever Wondered (02:06 to 05:46)
Growing Up (17:25 to 21:12) 
Same Mistake (43:28 - 47:15)
Follow Pratika:
Instagram 
Twitter
 
Accompanying artists
Roop Thomas on Bass
Reinhardt Dias on Acoustic guitar
Pritesh Prabhune (PrabhuNeigh) on Synths, Tracks, Percussion
Shishir Tao on Drums
 
Come be our friend:
Facebook @maedinindia
Instagram @maedinindia
Twitter @maedinindia
 
CREDITS:
Host: Mae
Twitter: @maebemaebe
Instagram: @maemariyam
Producer: Shaun Fanthome, Sean D'mello, Ruchi Sawardekar 
Content & Social Media Manager: Meghna Gulati
Sound Editing & Additional Engineering by: Lakshman Parsuram
Video Editing by: Jishnu Guha
Artwork Design by Alika Gupta
Episode Mixed & Mastered by: Kartik Kulkarni
Music Mixed by: Harsh Karmakar
Music Mix Supervision: Ashyar Balsara & Jehangir Jehangir
Recorded at Island City Studios

Pratika

Here’s a very special episode of Maed in India. 
You may have heard of this very cool gig called the Red Bull Tour Bus.
It’s a behemoth music tour that travels across India, bringing you extraordinary Indian indie performances. It’s now been 10 years since it started and recently, our very own Mae Mariyam Thomas along with fellow music aficionados Nirmika Singh and Amit Gurbaxani were the judges got to judge the Red Bull Off The Roof Band Hunt, where young artists or bands have the chance to play the gig of a lifetime. Though they were spoiled for choice with the talent there had to be one winner - soul R&B; crew Queendom! 
 
Brecilla D'Souza and Damini Gautam are back (check out their 2021 Ladies Special episode here) and with their whole band in tow and new unreleased music to share.
 
Learn how to manifest a performance on Red Bull Off The Roof tour bus, the power of 3 part harmonies, why the stage is their safe space and of course, what it really means to be a queen and making that word less la di da. 
 
Song List (Audio):
Pussy Talk (01:41 - 07:09)
Colony (16:11 - 18:26)
Search for Meaning (31:26 - 35:42)
 
Follow Queendom:
Instagram @queendomindia
 
Queendom is: 
Brecilla D'Souza on vocals
Damini Gautam on vocals                   
 
Accompanying artists
Meera Desai on vocals
Pratika on vocals
Shivang Kapadia on drums                    
Pranav Kamat on electric guitar
Adi Ahir on bass guitar
 
Come be our friend:
Facebook @maedinindia
Instagram @maedinindia
Twitter @maedinindia
 
CREDITS:
Host: Mae
Twitter: @maebemaebe
Instagram: @maemariyam
Producer: Shaun Fanthome, Sean D'mello, Ruchi Sawardekar 
Content & Social Media Manager: Meghna Gulati
Sound Editing & Additional Engineering by: Lakshman Parsuram
Video Editing by: Jishnu Guha
Episode Mixed & Mastered by: Kartik Kulkarni
Music Mixed by: Jehangir Jehangir
Recorded at Island City Studios

Queendom

On the special occasion of Sri Lanka’s Independence Day on Feb 4th, Mae sits down with Sri Lankan reggae/dub/rock band, The Soul. They chat about the band's insistence on NOT being a cover band and making only original music (and being a broke musician in the process), the sad sad situation of Sri Lanka’s economy but also how it’s not sad and everything is perfectly fine (right?). When talking about their music it ranges from dystopian futures and reflections on political turmoil all the way to the woes of being a struggling independent artist. Oh and they teach Mae some Sinhalese too (whether it was successful or not you’ll have to listen to the episode to find out).
 
Song List (Audio):
Dancer Wake (01:13 - 06:35)
Light Bringer (25:52 - 32:27)
Lucky Child (38:38 - 48:34)
Grasshopper (57:16 - 1:04:41)
 
Follow The Soul:
Instagram @thesoulsrilanka
Facebook @thesoulsrilanka
The Soul is: 
Dave Roberts on vocals
Khazim Miskin on lead guitar
Uvindu Perera on bass
Sarani Perera on rhythm guitar
Divanka Sewmin on drums
 
Come be our friend:
Facebook @maedinindia
Instagram @maedinindia
Twitter @maedinindia
 
CREDITS:
Host: Mae
Twitter: @maebemaebe
Instagram: @maemariyam
Producer: Shaun Fanthome, Nikkethana Kamal, Ruchi Sawardekar 
Content & Social Media Manager: Meghna Gulati
Sound Editing & Additional Engineering by: Lakshman Parsuram
Video Editing by: Jishnu Guha
Episode Mixed & Mastered by: Kartik Kulkarni
Music Mixed by: Ashyar Balsara
Recorded at Island City Studios

Ladies Special - Sushma Soma

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