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From carnatic roots to the silver screen: Aashray Harishankar’s Indian American sound

Harishankar, who made his feature-film scoring debut with Namaslay, sheds light on his musical roots, diaspora identity and creative journey.

Written by Bhavana P.

For Southern California-based composer, producer and sound artist Aashray Harishankar, Indian and American influences have never existed as separate worlds. His music draws from Carnatic classical traditions, jazz, electronic music and contemporary composition, reflecting an upbringing where multiple cultures and artistic traditions intersected.

In a conversation with New India Abroad, Harishankar spoke about his journey from studying Carnatic music as a child to making his feature-film scoring debut with Namaslay, a film that explores Indian identity, the diaspora experience and the appropriation of yoga in the United States.

Musical upbringing

“I think it's always been connected for me,” Harishankar said of his Indian and American identities. “I had a really diverse upbringing in Irvine.

I grew up with a lot of Indian families, a lot of East Asian families, a lot of American families, and I think I had a really good balance.”

His musical journey began in Southern California, where he studied Carnatic music with Sri N. Muralikrishnan, who taught him keyboard and veena, while Muralikrishnan’s wife, Rose, taught vocals. 

His mother, Ramya Harishankar, is a Bharatanatyam teacher, while his father has spent decades organizing cultural events involving dance, music, theatre, education and language. His grandmother, a singer, was another important influence.

Multidisciplinary sound

Harishankar considers his Carnatic Arangetram around 15 years ago an important turning point in his musical journey. From there, his interests expanded into jazz, Western music, electronic production, pop, R&B, sound production, storytelling, dance and filmmaking.

“I think my art grew by picking pieces up from different people and different projects in different places,” he said.

That broad musical vocabulary became particularly important when he began working on Namaslay, developed by filmmakers Rish and Kanish, whom Harishankar first met in 2018.

A story close to home

For Harishankar, the film was more than a professional opportunity. Its central character’s experience as a Tamil American navigating identity and culture resonated with his own background.

“I really connect with the idea of the diaspora experience, which is what it portrays in the film,” he said.

The project brought together themes that were already familiar to him through his family and community, including Bharatanatyam, Carnatic and Hindustani music and Indian cultural traditions.

The film also examines the commercialization and appropriation of yoga in the West. Harishankar said that while he had not personally practiced at American yoga studios, living in Los Angeles and conversations with friends, social media influencers and health professionals gave him an understanding of the issue.

He contrasted the commercial environment surrounding yoga in the US with its cultural and spiritual significance in India, where yoga and meditation can represent refuge and community.“I'm starting to realize, and also seeing people on Instagram, all these influencers and health professionals who are not really gurus or anything. They're not really yoga teachers. They're just trying to create a business. So that's definitely relatable to me, is seeing people who are clearly trying to take advantage of something that's becoming popular, which is health and wellness, and yoga and meditation. Those are things that we, in India, find sacred. They're not supposed to be commercialized, necessarily. It's a place of refuge. And it's a place for people to make a community of,” he emphasized. 

Letting Indian music tell the story

One of Harishankar’s challenges was incorporating his Indian musical influences without making the score feel stereotypically “Indian.”

“It's just about understanding the function of the music and using the foundations,” he said.

He explained that film music does not always have to be overtly cinematic or orchestral. It can be intimate, simple or emotional, depending on what the story requires. His approach was to understand the musical traditions he had inherited and determine how they could serve the film.

He also drew a connection between music and Indian classical dance, where gestures communicate stories without words.

“I think Indian dance is a storytelling language,” he said, explaining how Bharatanatyam and Kathak can communicate narratives through movement. Music, he suggested, can similarly use musical “gestures” to tell a story without relying on exaggerated effects.

Trip to Chennai

The project eventually brought Harishankar to India to record portions of the score. Among the highlights was recording at AM Studios in Chennai, associated with A.R. Rahman.

“It was a dream,” he said.

For Harishankar, the experience carried particular significance because his parents are from Chennai and he has visited the city frequently.He recalled initially finding the opportunity difficult to believe before realizing the responsibility that came with it.

“I felt like I belonged there,” he said. “I felt like I deserved to be there.”

Overcoming imposter syndrome

Breaking into the American entertainment industry, however, has not been without challenges. Harishankar identified imposter syndrome as one of the biggest obstacles.

“I think the biggest challenge is imposter syndrome,” he said, noting that creative industries can sometimes depend heavily on connections and networks.

For artists without those connections, he said, it can be difficult to believe they deserve a place in the industry.

His experience with Namaslay changed that perception.

“This experience has very much taught me that I deserve what I wanted in the first place,” he said.

The challenge, he added, is finding people willing to provide that opportunity. He credited his family, friends and the Los Angeles creative community for helping him find those opportunities.

A new generation creating representation

Harishankar sees growing space for South Asian creatives in American entertainment.

“I think it's starting,” he said. “Ten years ago, you couldn't say this.”

He pointed particularly to younger members of the diaspora who are creating their own music, films and other forms of art while using digital platforms to reach audiences directly.

Although Harishankar said he is not personally very active on social media and sometimes finds it “contrived,” he acknowledged its ability to help artists reach people beyond traditional networks.

Music that lets audiences find themselves

Ultimately, Harishankar does not want his music to dictate a single interpretation of the Indian American or diaspora experience.“They don't need to understand me, necessarily,” he said.

Instead, he hopes listeners will bring their own experiences to the music and find meanings that may not even have been what he originally intended.

“That's the beauty of art,” he said.

For Harishankar, art is ultimately a way for people to look inward.

“It's supposed to make people understand themselves better,” he said.