It’s March, and we know what that means on Maed in India. It’s time for the Ladies Special! It’s our annual series of episodes to showcase some of the most talented women from India’s indie music scene. This year, the theme is Lady Collabs. And the first musical pair we’re featuring is soul pop duo Gouri and Aksha, made up of Gouri Ranjit from Kerala and Aksha Kini from Punjab. They talk about how Aladdin played a part in their crossing of paths, the role of voice notes in their writing process, how not always agreeing on everything has helped them as artists, and songs with ambiguous meanings. You’ll also get to hear 2 of their songs!

Song List:

Change (01:15 - 04:48)

Hold On Tight (25:12 - 28:05)

Follow Gouri and Aksha:

Instagram @gouriaksha

Facebook @gourinaksha

Twitter @GouriandAksha

Gouri Ranjit

Aksha Kini

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

This week, Mae features an artist who is pretty familiar with the stage, but not as a musician. He's stand-up comedian Aakash Mehta, who recently dropped his debut record 'What a Life’. They chat about his international folk dance performances, how music has always been his first love, his ability to play an array of percussive instruments in high school, and how comedy happened. According to Aakash, this record is the culmination of 5 years of journal entries, and you’ll get to hear 3 songs from it too.   

Song List:

Over To You (01:03 - 03:34)

Sister Superior (14:23 - 17:10)

Song with Strings (28:54 - 31:07)

Follow Aakash Mehta:

Instagram @kuchbhimehta

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

Recorded at Island City Studios

This week, on Maed in India, we’re introducing you to a freshly minted act in the indie music scene. In the studio with Mae are ambient electronic musician Shadaab Kadri aka Riatsu, and multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and educator Nush Lewis, who have joined forces to create the live harp & electronica project Kayoben. They explain how they came together, the meaning behind their band name, how they find the middle ground between both their writing styles, and facing nay-sayers & self doubt as artists. You also get to hear four new songs including an unreleased gem live in the studio, exclusively on Maed in India!

Song List:

Hold On (01:03 - 08:03)

My Mind (16:33 - 24:47)

Crashing (36:21 - 43:08)

Between Lines (51:05 - 58:50)

Kayoben

Nush Lewis

Shadaab Kadri

Follow Kayoben:

Instagram @kayobenmusic

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

Recorded at Island City Studios

Kicking off our 2022 studio sessions is Bangalore folk rock band Swarathma! They talk to Mae about their time (and money) during the pandemic, they explain their exquisitely worded band member bios, unpack their relationship with social causes, and talk about a musical project that helped tribal musicians from across the country make their own original music. Speaking of original music, get ready for live performances of 4 songs that span the band’s rich discography from the last 20 years..

Song List:

Aasman Ki Dukaan (00:59 - 06:57)

Mushkil Mein Jeena (14:28 - 20:28)

Raah-e-Fakira (30:08 - 35:28)

Dus Minute Aur (50:22 - 54:22)

Swarathma

Vasu Dixit - Vocals & acoustic guitar

Jishnu Dasgupta - Bass guitar & backing vocals

Sanjeev Nayak - Violin

Varun Murali - Lead guitar

Vinay Ramakrishnan - Drums

 

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Facebook @swarathma

Twitter @swarathma

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

Joining us on this episode all the way from sunny Los Angeles, California is R&B, soul, indie, folk singer-songwriter Ramya Pothuri. It's been a while since they hung out, and clearly the only way Mae can catch up with people is by interviewing them. On this episode, she tells us why she’s now an LA girl, why she needs Mae to be her drama interventionalist, her latest single 'Male Attention' about a guy she honestly doesn’t even like that much.

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Follow Ramya Pothuri:

Instagram @ramyapothuri

Facebook @ramyapothurisinger

 

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

We’ve come to the end of our nostalgia-fueled expedition into Maed in India’s archives, and for a fitting finale we have none other than rapper Taran Kaur Dillon… aka Hard Kaur! A pioneer in the hip hop scene and one of the few women rapping in a male-dominated industry, she featured on Episode 74 in November 2016. She talked to Mae about her difficult childhood, where her love for hip hop began, 200 pairs of shoes and her single ‘Sherni’. You also get to hear her perform one her oldest original songs.

 

Song List:

1984 Changed My Life (18:39 - 21:35)

Missing You (41:40 - 45:19)

Sherni (1:09:37 - 1:13:03)

Breathe (1:21:00 - 1:24:49)

 

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

Throwing it back to September 2017, Episode 110 of the show, we bring you indie scene pioneer and frontman of rock outfit Indus Creed, Uday Benegal! He talks about Indus Creed’s OG avatar Rock Machine, moving to New York, jamming with Slash, and being a cynical optimist. And despite recovering from an injury, he plays stripped down versions of his songs in the studio. 

Song List:

Take it Harder (18:21 - 23:33)

Fireflies (37:18 - 41:46)

Looking For The Mahatma (1:03:47 - 1:08:38)

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Follow Uday Benegal:

Instagram @udaybenegal

Facebook @UdayBenegalOfficial

Twitter @udaybenegal

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

Happy New Year to our Maed in India fam! It’s 2022, and for this week’s episode, we’re going waaaaay back into our archives to Episode 20 (you read that right) of Maed in India from October 2015. This was when Mae had India-born California-raised indie-folk singer-songwriter Zoya Mohan on the show! Zoya and her guitarist Anthony joined Mae at the iconic Famous Studios to talk about old albums that will never see the light of day, her first guitar, teaching herself Logic and Pro Tools to create her EP Letters to Toska, and moving back to India. 

Song List:

‎Letters to Toska (09:17 - 12:32)

What’s Done Is Done (19:37 - 22:01)

Swim (34:00 - 37:08)

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Follow Aditi Ramesh:

Instagram @iamzoya

Facebook @zoyamusicofficial

Twitter @iamzoya

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

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Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

This week, on Maed in India, we continue our journey through our archives with a very special episode. It was July 2017 when Episode 104 of Maed in India came out, and it featured none other than the British reggae dancehall legend Apache Indian! Trying (but not always succeeding) to keep her fangirlling under control, Mae chats to him about his Jamaican nanny, his biggest hits like Boom Shak a Lak, Chok There, Arranged Marriage, stopping gang violence in his hometown Birmingham, starting his own academy & youth centre, and his new record ‘In JA’. He also performed one track acapella exclusively for Maed in India, so don’t miss it!

Song List:

Beautiful Girls (01:41 - 04:49)

Save The World (29:40 - 33:32)

See You Later (37:10 - 40:34)

Hold U down (42:41 - 46:18)

Mariana (50:08 - 53:49)

I Pray (1:28:39 - 1:29:52)

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Follow Apache Indian:

Instagram @apacheindianhq

Facebook @officialapacheindian

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Facebook @maedinindia

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala

Recorded at Island City Studios

On this week’s episode of our Maed in India nostalgia-fest, we’re throwing it back to Episode 119 that came out in November 2017. This was Carnatic jazz singer-songwriter Aditi Ramesh’s first appearance on Maed in India. She talks about how she left corporate law to pursue music, her parents’ disappointment, and of course, curd rice. She also performs three songs from her debut EP Autocorrect!

Song List:

Stuff On Our Minds (10:31 - 13:18)

Small Fish In A Big Pond (24:50 - 27:59)

Marriageable Age (38:02 - 42:20)

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Follow Aditi Ramesh:

Instagram @aditi_ramesh

Facebook @aditirameshmusic

Come be our friend:

Facebook @maedinindia

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CREDITS:

Host: Mae

Twitter: @maebemaebe

Instagram: @maemariyam

Audio Editor Post: Kartik Kulkarni

Producer: Shaun Fanthome and Husein Haveliwala