With the upcoming Hollywood film Smurfs marking many firsts for Subhi, the Indian-American musician opens up on charting her career on international turf
Subhi. Pic/Michael Higgins
For singer-songwriter Subhi, the upcoming July release Smurfs is special for more reasons than one. “I have not created a song for an animated film before this, so it was a new experience for me. Also, this is the first Hollywood film for which I have written and created music. If I’m not mistaken, I am also the first south Asian artiste to sing in Punjabi on an animated Hollywood film,” says the musician of Indian descent who features alongside ace musicians like DJ Khaled, Cardi B, and Natania for the Smurfs’ song, Higher love.
Describing Higher love as a track that talks about how “love conquers all,” she expresses gratitude for the opportunity to get an insight into the characters she was creating music for. “[During our initial discussions], the movie was in a sketch format. For certain scenes, we were shown sketches [because] it hadn’t been animated then. The team explained the kind of song they wanted, and the vibe that they needed. It wasn’t as simple as saying, ‘Yeh scene hai. Gaana banao.’ We got the full experience of who these people are and what Smurfs is about. We got the bigger picture behind the characters and had discussions about the references. It was fun. Another learning experience was the manner in which we had to add Indian influence into a mainstream Hollywood project without rubbing it in, in a stereotypical way. That’s a delicate balance to strike.”
A still from Smurfs
Having decided to create a name as a musician in 2012, Subhi recalls that her stint with Mira Nair served as a turning point. “I was doing an internship with [her] and was also working on Wall Street. I wanted to get into music [but wondered if] it was a financially viable career option. Working on Mira’s Broadway musical, Monsoon Wedding, gave me a little more insight. I realised that I was immensely happy doing that. In 2013, when I moved to Chicago, I began to be involved in the music scene there. I’m interested in jazz and blues, and started to write jazz and Hindi songs,” says the artiste, who, today, excels at blending the Indian and American styles of music.
“As a desi, Bollywood is in my blood,” she says, adding that the idea of making a career in this industry always appealed to her. But when the music scene in Chicago would require her attention whilst she was searching for a job in India, she realised she couldn’t chart a career while straddling two worlds. “My life was in Chicago, but I would stay in Mumbai for a couple of months. I’d have to go back and forth. And even though I met a tonne of directors and did a few projects in Mumbai, I needed to be based here [to excel]. [In my absence], I would lose out on projects. Also, it is a competitive industry. When I realised that I wasn’t fit to move to Mumbai, I decided to hold off on the projects in the city.”
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