“Dark knees, dark eyes, no powder, sun-filled, my skin holds power...” At her recent concert at Phoenix MarketCity, popular YouTube performer Vidya Vox prefaced ‘Apdi Podu Di’ with a disarming confession. “Growing up in the US as an Indian wasn’t easy. I was teased about Indian food and the colour of my skin and why my knees and elbows were dark.”
This song was her response. After a concert in Bengaluru, the singer was in Chennai on her Mad Dreams Tour, named after her latest album released in July this year. She interspersed original compositions like ‘Mad Dreams’, ‘Butterfly’ and ‘Koothu Fire’, with a mix of medleys that fuse genres and languages, which made her popular. For instance, a version of the Chainsmoker’s ‘Closer’, with ‘Kabira’ from Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, ‘Let Me Love You’ with ‘Tum Hi Ho’ and ‘How deep Is your love’ with ‘Balam Pichkari’.
A proud Chennai girl, Vidya Iyer, now Vox (stage name) moved to Virginia when she was nine but continues to visit every year. While most fans of the 29-year-old danced and sang along at the concert, there was one who sat glued to her seat, often flashing that proud, warm, adoring smile unique to grandmothers. Vidya asked everyone to get on their feet... “Come on, everyone. Except my paati.”
Vidya’s sense of style is much like her music, a fusion. In Chennai, she wore yolk-yellow pants teamed with a red embroidered crop top that resembled a sari blouse, with shimmery gold bangles. She was joined by two flexible dancers in camouflage pants and neon pink bralettes, in a well-choreographed show, with slick, dramatic lighting. The dancing was a seamless blend of hip hop, Bharatanatyam and contemporary moves.
Shanker Tucker (American clarinetist who collaborates with Vidya) was on stage working the keyboard, along with musicians Daniel Kenneth Rego on guitar and Hamza kazi on drums. The show is now headed to Kochi.
