SRK's Met Gala buzz is validation of rising ‘brown renaissance' in West: Singer Raja Kumari

The uproar that Shah Rukh Khan's presence created at the Met Gala is yet another pinnacle of the "brown renaissance"— something that a bunch of Bollywood stars, Indian celebrities, and NRIs like her who made it big have been prepping the western world for some time now, said Grammy-nominated songwriter and rapper Raja Kumari.

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"I think this brown renaissance that we've all been working towards — whether it's the domination of Bollywood, or people like Shah Rukh Khan and Diljit Dosanjh appearing at the Met Gala and the uproar it created — is long overdue. And these things are becoming increasingly apparent now," Kumari told PTI over a Zoom call.

Kumari, aka Svetha Yallapragada Rao, who has sung for music industry bigwigs like AR Rahman and Anirudh Ravichander, has recently been nominated for the American Music Awards 2025 for her soundtrack for 'Arcane: League of Legends Season 2' — Renegade (We Never Run).

Kumari said she is the only Indian-origin artiste to be nominated at the world's largest fan-voted music awards show. “I've always been a global artiste, so a nomination for an AMA is a great reminder that there's still much more for me to, you know, impact and grow. I hope we win,” added Kumari.

Growing up as a first-generation American in California, Kumari said the brown renaissance the world is witnessing now is the kind of validation she had been waiting for all her life. For much of her life, Kumari said she could neither be here nor there. Later, when she started creating music, she tuned into that angst.

Her songs like “NRI” — in which she talks about being too brown for the label, too privileged for the co-sign, and how even her sari isn't Indian enough — are proof of this phase in her life.

"When I was growing up, you couldn't see Indian people in lead roles. If television shows like 'Never Have I Ever' had been out when I was a child, maybe my life would have been very different." Kumari, fortunately for all her fans, was not the kind to wait for others to pave the way for her. Instead, she created a pop star out of herself, channelling in-your-face insouciance, as her "brown face" stared defiantly at the world.

Although she said politicising her art was not necessarily her thing, Kumari is also aware that, as a child of the diaspora, she became a very powerful voice for it. Much of it may have been bravado to begin with, but just as the world evolved to embrace India and its culture, Kumari's music evolved too.

"Because the thing is, no matter where I go in the world, it's not like they see an American — they see an Indian. So what's the point of categorising me, whether I'm Indian enough or not Indian," said Kumari.

As time went by, she started digging deeper into her roots, pushing the boundaries defining both worlds and pulling out sounds that went beyond defiance. The temple bells that were once sneaked into her hip-hop groove are now the central theme anchoring her latest album, 'Kashi to Kailash'.

Kumari said she had already experienced, as a Bharatanatyam dancer, that connecting with India would expand her repertoire as an artiste. "So that was something that drew me to India, because if I was going to release a song on Meera in America, the reference is lost. But when I present myself as Meera here, you get the references from art, history, and poetry... I feel like India has always been a playground for me to express myself, because there's so much layering in history and symbology that you can work with," said Kumari.

India, too, is evolving musically, and in how it treats its musicians, she said. "When I first came, I would sometimes be the only female in the entire lineup. But, you know, things have changed. More women, yes, but people are also realising the soft power that comes from exporting a global act," she added.

The work that has been done in the independent music scene over the last 20 years is finally panning out into something — it's now possible to think of music in India as a viable livelihood, said Kumari.

If there's a grouse, it's that she feels songwriters' rights are not protected enough. "A lot of times, artistes are just paid once and don't have access to royalties. And since I come from the US and I know how royalties and publishing laws work, I would hope that more is done to protect artists so we can continue to have a thriving music scene," she added.

As for her, she said she can't promise she'll continue to make the kind of music she did six or seven years ago. "But I can promise that its quality and musicality will always evolve and improve," she said.