Shweta Subram is an Indo Canadian Playback singer. She is a highly talented singer who has lent her voice to Bollywood, Indian TV shows, and has performed for various shows across the world. Born in Dubai, Shweta graduated from Merivale High school and obtained a B.Com Hons. from Carleton University. Shweta is a versatile singer and high energy performer. She debuted in Bollywood with Dil-e-Nadaan alongside Ayushmann Khurrana for the movie Hawaizaada, and featured with Salim-Sulaiman at the IIFA Awards in Toronto. Shweta was honoured to sing the National Anthem for Indian PM Narendra Modi’s grand reception in Canada. She became the youngest Indian to perform at the esteemed Carnegie Hall with The Piano Guys. Having a huge fan base with 74,571 Likes and 73,634 Followers on Facebook, she has won several hearts through her talent. In addition, her own series, Shwetapella, has received tremendous accolades. Her other career achievements embark on her remarkable journey :
– Featured with The Piano Guys for Indian rendition of Don’t You Worry Child (15 million views on YouTube)
– Awarded as South Asian of the Year by Zee TV Canada and Maple Diversity
– Awarded Lokvani Spotlight on Excellence Award 2011 in the “Amazing Artist” category
– Her collaboration with The Piano Guys has crossed 17 million views online.
– Won the Shankar Mahadevan Academy Award for Best Singer. Competition organized by his academy and judged by Shankar Mahadevan himself.
– Awarded as Best Singer in North America by Sangam Kala Group, the organization which discovered Sonu Nigaam, Shreya Ghosal, and Sunidhi Chauhan
– Awarded as Best Singer by Dubai Arts Lovers Association.
– Honours from the London Academy of Music & Dramatic Arts; recipient of prestigious Duke of Edinburgh award
– Performed in 50+ cities across India, UAE, USA, Czech Republic, Japan, Indonesia, Caribbean, and Canada for 500 – 25,000 people
– Featured with JOSH for crossover film Perfect Mismatch (starring Anupam Kher and Boman Irani)
– Wrote and sung for Canadian film BAS! Beyond the Red Light (music by Tarun Nayar of Delhi 2 Dublin)
In conversation with Shweta:
Q: As a great music artist, tell us something more about you.
So sweet of you to call me great. I am still learning and thrive to continue as I believe there is no end to this ocean of music. I was born and raised in Dubai. Growing up, I never thought I would become a professional singer. I was aiming to become a doctor or microbiologist. My career took a turn after I came to Canada. While I was completing my honors in marketing and psychology, my friends enrolled me into a singing competition organized by Sangam Kala Group where participants from all of North America would compete for 4 months. I emerged as a winner with my rendition of ‘Lambi Judaai’ by Reshma and and there was no looking back since then.
Q: When did your love for music arise? What is music according to you?
I always loved music. Since I come from a family of classical singers I believe that seed of music was rooted somewhere in my system. I began to take music more seriously after I won the Sangam Kala Group competition in 2005. I felt a sense of responsibility after winning the title and realized that competition is intense our there. I took learning seriously and still do. According to me, music is food to my soul.
Q: What are the rules that one should follow to seek perfection into music?
Discipline and a ton of it! I can’t stress enough how important practice is and also listening to different styles of music.
Q: When did you start learning music? What were the daily routines that you followed?
I started learning Carnatic music at the age of 5 in Dubai with Mrs. Bhagavati Sankaran. Now I learn Hindustani music under the guidance of Sunil Borgaonkar. I have always wanted to learn to play an instrument and I hope to get to it soon 🙂 As mentioned earlier, I continue to do riyaaz (practice), listen to one raaga everyday and different styles of music.
Q: Why did you choose this as your professional career? What is the most favorite thing about it?
My most favorite thing about being a professional singer is performing for my fans and a large audience. I love and live off the energy I see when people are singing and dancing along. Adrenaline rush keeps me going 🙂
Q: How did music move on with you during your student life? What were your other interests as a student?
During my student life, I kept on participating in music competitions. But as a student, I always saw music as a hobby. I have been taking it more seriously as a profession only in the last couple of years. As a student,
I loved doing everything that was outside the walls of a classroom. Haha! dont’t think I will be a good example for other students.
Q: What do you think is the most important thing that matters to build up a good name in this industry?
I think being true to yourself. Knowing oneself and working on your strengths is extremely important. Apart from that, always respecting your peers and learning from your inspirations 🙂
Q: What were your struggles in this journey so far? What motivates you to keep going?
Each one of us experience a fair share of struggles. I haven’t had an easy journey. You meet all kinds of people. It hurts to see some people who believe when they are giving a talent an opportunity they are doing you a favor. Unfortunately, one develops a bad taste when they have some negative experiences. Fortunately, I have met some amazing people who have believed in my talent and shown me the way. That keeps me going. Belief in my talent and support from my parents, mentors and loved ones.
Q: What are the changes that you have seen in the music industry over the years and especially at a platform like YouTube?
A ton of changes! Lot of new music directors coming in. Lots of fresh sounds. Actors and actresses are also taking a stab at playback singing. I believe, at one point, YouTube worked as a great platform to discover talent. It probably still is. But now the digital space is also getting very clustered and one has to find a unique tactic to stand out of the rest.
Q: What are your future goals and upcoming projects?
My future goals is to keep singing and collaborating with amazing musicians from around the world. My upcoming project is my playback debut for Tamil movie ‘Maayavan’ under the guidance of music director Ghibran. I have sang one song called ‘Mella Mella’ I also have sang 2 songs for upcoming Sunny Leone film called ‘Mostly Sunny’ which will be released soon on Netflix worldwide soon.
Q: What’s your message to the aspiring singers who want to build a place in this industry?
Work hard, play hard. Enjoy life! Don’t let failure pull you down.
Shweta’s Facebook Page
