GAAYATRI is a Hindustani Vocalist, and Indian-American Composer, Music Director, Songwriter, and Artist.
As a Hindustani vocalist, she hails from the Rampur Maihar-Senia Gharana having trained under the late Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. She began her vocal training from him in the traditional Guru-Shishya parampara at the age of 4, and studied with him until his passing at the age of 18. Gaayatri is the first pure vocalist of this lineage of music since the time of Mian Tansen’s daughter Saraswati. She was trained specifically and extensively by her Guru to represent this rare music in its most authentic form. She had the fortunate of singing for Smt. Annapoorna Devi, and receiving her blessings that her presentation is authentic to the tradition and lineage as 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 USA 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.
Living in America and coming from this unique heritage, she wanted to be a part of the American music industry without compromising her roots. Eventually, she found a niche as a specialist for Indian influenced music for media and commercial music as a Composer and Music Director, Songwriter, and Artist.Her Hindustani vocals have been featured in media projects such as Ms. Marvel, League of Legends’ Nilah’s Theme, Million Dollar Arm, Hundred Foot Journey, and Pelé: Birth of a Legend.
As a Composer and Music Director, she blends Indian music with cinematic music to create unique Indian influenced soundtracks. She started her career working as a studio assistant to AR Rahman working on films such as Alia Bhat’s breakout film Highway, the Late Sridevi’s MOM, and Mani Rathnam’s Chekka Chivantha 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 choral works continue to be featured in prestigious venues such as the Lincoln Center, and Carnegie Hall.
As a Songwriter and Artist, she started out as a session vocalist for A-list artists such as Camila Cabello, Billie Eilish, PHINNEAS, Justin Timberlake, Carlos Santana, and Angelique Kidjo. Stepping up 20 feet, she blends her Hindustani vocals with Pop to create a new sound of Desi Pop. Her songs feature multi-lingual songwriting in Telugu, Hindi, and English. 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.