The pop star says she wrote the lyrics for her new single back in 2021, when she migrated back to New Zealand from Malaysia. The Asian art scene, she recalls, was still quiet back then, compared to current times.
“People usually had difficulty understanding my Indian heritage alongside my Malaysian roots.”
She says one time she told someone she was born in Malaysia, they asked her: “What part of India is that?”.
“Of course that’s just bad geography from their end, but that points out the lack of awareness and inquisitiveness to just ask.”
Another common misrepresentation she has faced over the years is that of being called a Gujarati — a person who hails from the West region of India.
“It’s bizzare because tracing back my grandparents lineage, they come from the southern parts of India.”
Where My Asians At? is the output of her internal reflection on her dual identity, of her growing up in Aotearoa and Malaysia and how the two worlds collide.
Although she had finished writing her song two years ago, it was only when Auckland City of Music helped her with an Equaliser Grant that she was able to produce her music.
“The grant awarded me $10,000 to work with a female director within the film industry to create a music video. So I teamed up with Jolin Lee, a writer-director based in Auckland, who actually hails from Singapore.”
Eventually her team reached out to renowned K-pop dancer and choreographer Rina Chae who loved the track and was “super keen to come on board”.
“She did really whip me into shape — especially someone like me who doesn’t have a great history with dancing. We also had a number of Persons of Colour (POC) creatives come on board, as they really resonated with the messaging of the song. They felt like it was a piece of art that they could relate to from their own journey.”
Although the pop star hails from Malaysia, she has, however, spent much of her early life in Taranaki. She moved back and forth between both locations a couple of times.
On her journey to musical stardom, she recalls being initially exposed to music through her church choir. Her father also played a role in introducing old school music tunes at home.
When she arrived in Taranaki, Reshma, started to participate in several songwriting and music competitions. She was 12 years old when she won the Mayor’s Choice award for Taranaki, in light of her musical accomplishments. One of her songs was even greatly acknowledged by Malaysia’s king of Reggae, Sasi the Don, who included her music in one of his albums.
While Reshma is considered as an emerging young artist in Aotearoa, the pop star bears a celebrity status in Malaysia, especially after her appearance in Akademi Fantasia in 2016. Five years later she nearly made it through the top 12 on Popstars New Zealand.
“Remembering my journey from Malaysia to New Zealand and having my Indian roots, I want my single to be a call to action for Asian creatives to feel empowered within the industry and to try and continue to put their best foot forward.”
■ To listen to her music visit https://tinyurl.com/2h8634tk
