Dhee is an Indian dubbing singer, known for her Tamil songs Naan Nee (2014), Rowdy Baby (2018) and Enjoy Enjaami (2021).
Wiki/Biography
Dhee was born Dheekshitha Venkadeshan on Friday, June 26, 1998, in Sydney, Australia. Her star sign is Cancer. She studied at Northmead High School of Creative and Performing Arts, Australia, from 2010 to 2016. Born into a musical family, the Chennai-based singer had a love for music from a very young age. Her mother, grandmother, and even great-grandmother were all renowned musicians. Surprisingly, Dhee never received professional musical training. In fact, she learnt Carnatic music from her mother and grandmother. In an interview, speaking about the beginning of her musical journey, she said,
My mom and grandma taught Carnatic music, but I never sat down and learned from them, and they didn’t force me to do it. I took lessons, but I never had professional training.”
Dhee grew up listening to various artists performing in her home 24 hours a day, which sparked her interest in music. At the age of six, she accidentally heard the songs of the American pop girl group Destiny’s Child and bought her first album. In an interview, she said:
I remember when I was about six years old, I was in my cousin’s car and I was listening to Destiny’s Child, and it blew my mind. I went and bought an album of theirs. It was the first album I ever bought for myself.”
Interested in becoming a full-time singer, she dropped out of school in 2016 and entered the entertainment industry.
appearance
Height (approximate): 5′ 5″
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Black
Family and Race
Dhee was born into a Sri Lankan Tamil family. Her mother, Meenakshi Iyer, is a singer and musician who is proficient in Carnatic music. Her father’s name is Venkadeshan and her brother’s name is Sudheekshanan. Later, her mother married Santhosh Narayanan, an Indian film composer who worked mainly in the Tamil film industry.
Dhee, Santhosh Narayanan and Meenakshi Iyer
Dhee with her mother and brother
Profession
At the age of 14, she began her career as a dubbing singer with the song “Disco Woman” from the Tamil horror film Pizza 2: Villa (2013). The song was well received and was composed by her stepfather Santosh Narayanan.
Disco Girls (2013)
She was nominated for the Vijay Award (2014) and the South Filmfare Award (2015) for Best Female Dubbing Singer for her hit song “Naan Nee” from the film Madras (2014).
Naan (2014)
She received critical acclaim for her performance in the sports drama film Irudhi Suttru (2016), in which she sang the songs “Ey Sandakaara” and “Usuru Narumbeley”. Dhee was nominated for the SIIMA Award for Best Female Dubbing Singer for her performance in the film Irudhi Suttru.
Irudi Sutru (2016)
After dropping out of school in 2016, she sang in several Tamil films such as Kabali (2016), Meyaadha Maan (2017) and Vada Chennai (2018). She also sang in the Telugu sports drama Guru (2017) on the songs “Oo Sakkanoda” and “Gundelothulalo”. Until 2018, all her songs were produced by her stepfather and Indian film composer Santosh Narayanan. She rose to fame with the song “Rowdy Baby” in the Tamil film Maari 2 (2018), in which she sang with Dhanush. The hit song was produced by Yuvan Shankar Raja and became one of the most viewed Tamil music videos, with over 1 billion views on YouTube.
Noisy Baby(2018)
Dhee collaborated with renowned Indian film composer AR Rahman in the song “Idharkuthaan” from the Tamil film Bigil (2019). She made her debut as a pop singer with the 2021 independent Tamil song “Enjoy Enjaami”, which has amassed over 100 million views on YouTube in less than a month. The hit song was produced by maajja, an initiative led by Oscar-winning music composer AR Rahman and popular British rapper MIA to showcase this emerging South Asian music talent to a global audience. Talking about her hit song in an interview, she said,
Enjoy Enjaami is about a time when we humans were not divided and were one with nature, and this song is calling out for that time – calling out for us to come together.”
Dhee in the music video for the song Enjoy Enjaami (2021)
Awards/Honors
- Winner of Raindrops Women’s Achievement Award (2019)
Dhee wins 2019 Raindrops Women of Achievement Award
- Won the Edison Award for Best Female Vocalist (2019)
- Won the Best Singer title at the 7th Behindwoods Gold Medal Awards for the song “Rowdy Baby” from the movie “Maari 2”
Dhee attended the Behindwoods Gold Medal Awards Ceremony (2019)
- Provoke Awards Best Singer for the song “Rowdy Baby” from the movie “Maari 2” (2019)
Favorite things
- Indian singers: MS Subbulakshmi, PB Sreenivas
- American singers: Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Kendrick Lamar
- Songwriters: Paul McCartney and John Lennon
Facts/Trivia
- “Enjoy Enjaami” is the first song released by maajja, the record label helmed by AR Rahman.
- In an interview, she attributed her unique dressing style to her mother. She said,
I look up to my mom when it comes to fashion and style. For as long as I can remember, she has always done things her own way and never followed trends. She is an extremely confident woman who dresses not for others but for herself.”
- Besides singing, she enjoys reading, writing, fashion and interior design, and painting.
- On November 24, 2019, Dhee’s mother Meenakshi Iyer was honoured at the fourth edition of the Femina Super Daughter Awards, which honours the proud parents of prominent figures.
Ms. Meenakshi Santhosh receives the Femina Super Daughter Award with her daughter Dhee (2019)
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education