Pay is earned through skill, experience and popularity, not gender: Mumbai’s DJ Tanushree Nekkanti

Tanushree Nekkanti aka DJ Beholdgold has been a disc jockey (DJ) for a little over two years now. Photo Courtesy: Tanushree Nekkanti

Mumbai-based Tanushree Nekkanti comes from a background in architectural design, but along the way, she found her love for music. "I've not been in the scene too long, maybe less than two years but in that short period, I've seen many newcomers, especially younger women who remind me of my early days. I would always go to shows, look at all the equipment and get overwhelmed, and almost overstimulated until I learned how to mix and realised that most of my blockage was mental not physical. My close friends from Bengaluru really inspired me to do this professionally. I started out wanting to play for them at after parties but together, they give me the confidence to be who I am as an artist," she shares.

DJ Tanushree believes that talent should be the focus, regardless of gender, and hints at her experience in overcoming industry norms. "I think talent speaks for itself. I personally have never faced discrimination based on my gender, but I can't comment for the rest of the industry. In fact, I find myself mostly on all-male line ups. So, I'm glad that the promoters I work with, programme me well into events that suit my sound. It's always fun meeting more female artists because I find that they're more open to quirky collaborations in terms of production and even just general content."

"I typically play at places such as Antisocial, Bonobo, Khar Social and Nesco Social, Veranda and Kitty Su. Then there are festival venues and some fun podcasts that we get to play at," she mentions.

On pay parity, she firmly believes compensation is based on experience and talent in her industry. "I think the pay scale doesn't differ based on gender but rather years in the industry, skill and popularity.

DJ Tanushree emphasizes on the idea of continuous learning and improvement. "I am constantly learning and only practice will make you physically better at DJ'ing."

DJ Tanushree had no plans of being a DJ. "I studied architecture to design sets for movies, but I was very young, and my family wasn't comfortable with me working late hours in the film industry which is kind of funny now as I work in another industry that has late hours. Although I loved architecture as a major and wouldn't change my college experience, I feel that my musical journey has given me back everything I've put into it. It's something that comes to me naturally. Luckily (or some would say unluckily), clubs in India shut quite early, so our gig slot times are not very late at night, at least not compared to the slots in other countries," she quips.

Encouraging aspiring female DJs to push through barriers, she advises, "I think it's best to remember that you're not in any race with anyone or the industry. Everyone gains success in their own due time so it's best not to burn yourselves out before you can reach that. Comparison is the biggest killer of confidence so just lock yourselves in, learn as much as you can from the people around you. Make music. Don't try to make music like that of artists you like. Just dive into it and see where your mind takes you because the constant studying of precedents and favourites might influence your raw creativity."