Like many young girls, Svetha Yellapragada Rao’s life wasn’t in the strata where she thought she was in. She wanted to do many things, like any normal teen around in the 2000s, but it was difficult, a South Indian girl growing up in America.

While growing up in the US, Svetha Rao was called 'The Indian Princess' by her friends and the name stuck. She discovered hip-hop and Lauryn Hill and the story took off from there. Now as songwriter-rapper Raja Kumari, has made it to the bylanes of India with her collaboration with Divine on City Streets.

A trained Indian classical dancer, Raja Kumari says that Bollywood was her window to learning about the Indian culture in America. It’s no wonder that she had a cameo in the hit music drama "Gully Boy".

Hip-Hop queen Raja Kumari life story is as interesting as the singer. With numerous songs to her credit, collaborations with various artists, Raja Kumari recently paid tribute to her Indian heritage with her latest song 'Made In India' created in collaboration with Metro Shoes.

Verus Ferreira got chatting with the Grammy nominated Indian – American rapper - singer – songwriter for her take on the new song Made in India which was released last month and also on her musical journey from America to India.

You started off making hip hop music infused with classical Carnatic touch.

Yes. I mean, my entire childhood was spent studying classical Indian dance, so I was immersed in Carnatic music.I got to travel with an eight-piece Carnatic band, the Veena player, flute, violin, and the Carnatic singer. So, I had a very interesting and unique experience as an American kid growing up in America to be that related to Carnatic music. So, I think it forms the foundation of how I perceive rhythm, sound, and even art itself. So, yes, my music has a Carnatic touch.

While in America your music represented the Indian American people. Who really influenced you in doing this and what was your goal?

What influenced me to do this was the lack of representation. I think now you're seeing so many Indian American artists come to the forefront, and I think they all kind of came from the same time as me, where we looked around and there was no one that looked like us. And the idea of beauty was blonde hair, blue eyes, and everything. That was something that we could never be. I think that the idea of beauty has shifted a lot.And maybe this is a controversial statement, but I always credit Kim Kardashian for making curvy brown like, dark skin, dark hair, dark features for redefining beauty to accept that, because I think in part of that experience, I was able to see myself in things now, and more people are being cast that looked like me and whatever it was. But I think what inspired me was to be the artist that I didn't have growing up. I wanted to see an Indian pop star that didn't reject her culture that celebrated it. So that was really my goal, was to cross over the mainstream and represent the culture worldwide.

Raja Kumari is a on stage name, how did you adopt the name, dropping your birth name.

My name is Svetha Yallapragada Rao, so obviously you can hear why that would be very difficult for an American to say. In the beginning parts of my career, people would ask me to change the spelling of my name. So, if it's spelled S-V-E-T-H-A they would say, why don't we make it S-A-V-A-E-T-A savatha, so we can understand it. And I really hated that idea that I would need to change my name for someone to understand it. But at the time, Sunita Rao is a classical dancer that has toured India and has all these accolades and is just like traditional artists. And when it came time to make my music, I just knew that I couldn't use my real name because it would be very confusing as to what show you would be attending. And at the time, obviously, through my dance, I'd become obsessed with ancient mythology and Sanskrit in general. And everyone used to call me Indian Princess, so obviously Princess and Sanskrit is Raja Kumari. And I like the idea of adopting as my name because Raja obviously means King.And the idea that a woman could be King, that was something that I really wanted to have in my aesthetics, in my visual and my band and that was that name was choosen.

Living in the U.S. how did you learn about Indian culture and music

Well, I think our parents came in the 70s, along with a huge exodus from India.There's, like, a huge immigration into California and New York and all these places. And I think that everyone that came in the 70s are like a time capsule. They brought with them the India that they remember. And that's why I think maybe in the diaspora, some things are a little different, like lost in translation to where now I live in India, and I know the difference. And I can see the difference between people my age in India and people my age in America. But I think that my parents, when they left in their 20s, for them, the classical arts were important. My mom wanted to be a classical dancer. My father is a doctor, and he was the first doctor in his family. So, it wasn't like they could really study art as a career prior. And I think my parents both decided they wanted a daughter who'd be a dancer.So, before I even came to this Earth, it was already decided that I would be an artist. So, I think my parents made sure to imbibe every part of Indian culture like a vessel they poured into me, and my music and my art is what remains.

Do you speak Telegu with your family? Have you ever thought of working on a song in Telegu?

Well, I have done a song in Telegu. I wrote it for Victory Venkata's birthday, and it's called Attention Everybody. It's a remake of one of his old songs as a sample. And I wrote, like, a whole song about how he makes me feel and how basically a song about him being victorious, which I think is right up my alley and right up his. So that was amazing. I collaborated with Rana Daggubati to make that happen. And yes, I speak Telegu in my home, and I can understand and speak Telegu, and it's a lot of fun to get more into that part of my culture because I think the mainstream Indian culture that passes over to the diaspora is mostly Hindi speaking and Bollywood films. So, it's fun to see this resurgence of this flood of South Indian actors into Bollywood ‘Bahubali’ and all these films like ‘Pushpa’ doing such a great job. It just brings me so much pride in my South Indian culture, and I'm excited to do more.

‘Gully Boy’  was a huge success in India. Hip Hop appears to have gone mainstream with young stars adopting it. What is your take on it?

Yeah, ‘Gully Boy’ is an iconic moment in the rise of Indian hip hop. I think between Gully Boy and MTV Hustle, where I was the judge on that show, I think that both of those things kind of showed the interest in hip hop, the education and how much changed. Like, there were so many contestants that came on MTV Hustle that only started rapping once they saw Gully Boy. So, I think that Gully Boy was really well timed to express the energy of the movement and what was actually happening in the streets. And I had been following all the different pockets and the different styles of hip hop coming out of the different areas. And I think that Gully Boy was just an awesome moment of validation. And I think a lot more of the older generation began to understand that hip hop is poetry and rhythm. That's what it stands for, rap, and that we are just like the poets of thousands of years before in this country. And hip hop is not going anywhere. It's going to just continue to be stronger and keep growing. And I think Gully Boy was a perfect way for the older generation to understand that.

What about girls taking to hip hop in an almost male dominating scene. Are you doing anything about it?

Yeah, I think I do the most that I can. I think Rani Cypher, which was a project that I did in early 2021, was about bringing together four powerful female MCs and making a Cypher. I invited member Siri from Bangalore, Meba from Northeast, and Dee MC from Mumbai, and I think that that showed that in some situations they always want to make it, that there's only one space available and the world is a competitive place, there's only one number one. But I think that in this situation, especially in such a male dominated scene, in every chance that I have to get an opportunity to get a project, I always reach back and try to bring more females on board, whether it's the artists that are actually in the song or my entirely female creative team, from the creative directors to the makeup, hair, styling and the producers and people behind the scenes. I try to make it a female led project, but I think that the tide is changing. And I hope for Season Two of MTV Hustle to return to have a platform for more females to take off. And I would just ask the males in the industry to do more features with the females. There are so many talented musicians, and you should be collaborating with them. By them, I mean us, me.

You were trained in classical dance did you ever think you would ever get into music?

I think I answered that earlier, I always wanted to be a singer. For me, music was like my liberation. Classical dance is obviously something my mom wanted to do. I enjoyed it. It's in my blood and it feeds into every piece of my artwork. But for me, music was a very personal expression. For me to express the duality of my two identities, being both American and Indian, and creating my own lane through my music was the best way for me to integrate both of those sides.

Tell us something about your unique style of music.

My music is all about being confident and I make a lot of music that is about manifestation. Sometimes I don’t feel strong about things I say or speak but once I write them and record them that they become part of my story and my art. And they encourage me to live the way I say. My music is about manifesting.

You have a new song Made in India, tell us something about the song and what inspired you to make it?

I think we are in this day and age where we have all the remixes and I just really wanted to bring back a song that  was iconic record that made people feel proud and I think Alisha Chinai’s Made in India from 1995 I remember watching it on weekend and I remember watching this show on Namaste America on weekends I have seen this music video when I was quite young and that has inspired me then when I go back and see my work I get a lot of inspiration from that video being a queen and celebrating yourself and it was moving to see an India pop star because in America it was Madonna and Whitney Houston. There was no idea of Alisha and the fact that she is a queen and I think it stuck with me. When I made this song, my art really deals with the duality of these two identifies – American and Indian. And I think I have dealt with this in the past with Made in India I have come up with healthier brace, where I don’t need validation. You may not accept me as Indian, but I see myself as Indian. Dek hNa Tu Mera Ye Chehra means I am an Indian if you accept it or not but yeah I am. This was my first independent video and it being my first release independently, through my label, bringing Madhuri Dixit was an incredible opportunity and I am so thankful that she came and supported me and that’s another example of women supporting women and she knew it was my first release and what it would mean for me to have her in the video and that would be she showed up.

Now that you’re spending so much time in Indian shows releasing music. Do you think you’re a Made in India girl now?

That is a funny question. I am spending a lot of time in India, living in India for the last 5 years. The only time I had spent out of the country was during pandemic. I went home. I have always been made in India. I have been touring India since I first performed when I was 6 years old in Hyderabad.  India has always been a tapestry through which I show my art. The beauty, the colours I love everything about India. I am always a Made in India Girl. I think I resent that question.

Are your parents happy about getting into music?

They are happy with it, and they love that I’m following my passion. They love Made in India. Some choices in my art that they are not happiest about though, my mother’s biggest complaint is that what would be the perspective grooms parents would think. Obviously, we are two different generations and we have come together and they are very proud of the work I have done.

Interviewed by Verus Ferreira