MIA & her melody makers

Pint-sized. All of 15. When she sings, it’s like the child in her takes a breather to make way for maturity and depth. The Bengaluru school girl who’s version of Snarky Puppy singer Chantae Cann’s song was shared on the singer’s Facebook page, and the rock icon even congratulated her on it, has come a long way. Mia Aliyah Makhija is surprisingly unswayed by opinion, and the many likes to her tiny musicology, though. A few solo performances for this student of Trinity training at the Nathaniel School of Music,  and her band Mia and the Chronicles was formed recently, and debuted this weekend. With Mia on vocals singing jazz, blues, soul and world music, the shy and talented Darryl Britto, 23, on acoustic guitar and the friendly Sange Wangchuk, 25 on percussion, the genre-breaking evening was a great showcase of her talent. After school practices, finding the right notes, tunes from diverse genres, Mia has definitely evolved into a little rock star!

Very rarely does one see a school girl captivate audiences with such inner belief. The beauty of it? If you were to close your eyes, and listen deeply, the profound range of vocals ringing out could be close to the tenets of Erykah Badu, Norah Jones, and a bit of Sushila Raman. The dimunitive 15-year-old does impress. She also shared her own composition — Hold On Tight. “I wrote this song on two different days. It captures my fluctuating feelings and moods, and brings to life my late night, 3 am thoughts,” says the little crooner, wise beyond her years.

With Darryl’s delicate strumming and Sange’s cajon infusion, the band’s medleys were spectacular — excerpts in Arabic, French, Spanish, English, Hindi and more, and the rhythm and beat traipsed beautifully with each other… as Mia with lilts, and highs, was the star. My Mind by Yebba, a soulful rendition left a few in quiet awe, Bellyache by Billie Eilish, Nakamarra by Hiatus Kayote, Java Jive by Manhattan Transfer and a world mash-up, etc, the talented trio were in harmony.

From covers of John Coltrane, Snarky Puppy, Santana, Sushila Raman, Ozzy Osborne, Nirvana, John Mayer, and Tupac, Mia has performed solo acts at the Asawari Music Foundation’s Outperformers2017, Alliance Francaise, BFlat, Blue Frog, HummingTree, Echoes of Earth Music Festival etc. So where does the talented songstress get inspired? “My songs are reflective of my everyday life and thoughts. My daily emotions find their way into my music and I’m happy to capture them through music,” says Mia and it was evident with her cover version of Put A Spell On You, spellbinding indeed! It takes a lot to get adults to sit quietly!