# Dhee (singer)

Dheekshitha Venkadeshan (born 26 June 1998), known professionally as Dhee, is an Australian singer known for her work as a playback singer in Indian cinema. Born in Jaffna to Tamil parents, she was raised in Sydney. She is best known for her collaborations with her stepfather, Santhosh Narayanan, and her distinctive alto voice. She won the Filmfare Award for Best Singer for “Kaattu Payale”, from the 2020 film Soorarai Pottru.

## Early life and career

Dhee was born on 26 June 1998 in Jaffna, Sri Lanka to a Sri Lankan Tamil father, Venkadesan, and a Sri Lankan Tamil mother, Meenakshi Iyer, who is a Carnatic musician. She was raised and went to school in Sydney, Australia, where her mother was based. She has an elder brother, Sudheekshanan, and is the stepdaughter of Indian music composer Santhosh Narayanan. Dhee began her playback singing career by performing songs in two of Narayanan's albums, Pizza II: Villa (2013) and Cuckoo (2014), during breaks from her education.
After settling in Chennai, Dhee made her breakthrough by singing "Naan Nee" on Narayanan's album, alongside Shakthisree Gopalan, for Pa. Ranjith's Madras (2014). The pair garnered nominations for Best Female Singer for their performance at the Filmfare Awards and Vijay Awards.
Dhee received critical acclaim for her work in Sudha Kongara's sports drama film, Irudhi Suttru (2016). As the lead singer for Ritika Singh's North Madras-based boxer character in the film, Dhee recorded two solo songs titled "Ey Sandakaara" and "Usuru Narumbuley". Behindwoods.com stated that the first song was "another classic Santhosh [Narayanan] number that gets your attention in no time", while noting, of the latter, that the "pathos song by Dhee is a revelation of sorts". In 2017, Dhee made her debut in Telugu cinema with songs from Kongara's Guru, a remake of the director's own Irudhi Suttru.
Dhee continued working with Narayanan in critically acclaimed albums for films such as Kaala (2018) and Vada Chennai (2018), before collaborating with Yuvan Shankar Raja for the song "Rowdy Baby" in Maari 2 (2018). Singing alongside actor Dhanush, the song garnered viral popularity soon after its release. The track has since gained more than 1.5 billion views on YouTube, making it the highest viewed Tamil music video and one of the most-viewed Indian videos of all time. In 2020, Dhee won her first Filmfare Award for Best Female Singer for the song "Kaattu Payale" in the Kongara film Soorarai Pottru (2020), working with composer G.V. Prakash Kumar.
Dhee made her debut in independent Tamil pop under the A.R. Rahman-helmed label, maajja, with "Enjoy Enjaami", featuring Arivu (from The Casteless Collective), on 7 March 2021. The track's production, influenced by Tamil Nadu's Oppari style, and its anti-oppression lyrical sentiment made the song an immediate success, with the music video gaining over 50 million views within weeks of its premiere on YouTube. Produced by Narayanan, it is the first song to be released under maajja. The success of "Enjoy Enjaami" soon became fraught with controversy about Arivu's perceived sidelining in the song's marketing in favour of Dhee and Narayanan. These debates largely revolved around his status as a 'featured' artist, and were spurred on by his absences from the covers of a Spotify remix by DJ Snake and the August 2021 issue of Rolling Stone India. In August 2022, Dhee responded to the controversy by asserting her record of crediting Arivu, and Narayanan, "every chance [she] got", while Arivu has maintained that the song was written and composed entirely by him.
In the years that followed, Dhee returned to Tamil cinema through musical collaborations with Narayanan and G.V. Prakash Kumar. She worked for the first time with composer Anirudh Ravichander on "Jujubee" for the 2023 hit Jailer, directed by Nelson and starring Ravichander's uncle, Rajinikanth. She made her Malayalam language debut in 2024 with "Viduthal" in Darwin Kuriakose's Anweshippin Kandethum, with music by Narayanan.
During the 2021 promotions for "Enjoy Enjaami", it was announced that Dhee's debut studio album would be produced by maajja, marking her first English-language release since debuting in the Indian music industry. Dhee's first English language single, "I Wear My Roots Like a Medal", was released in October 2024 without involvement from maajja. It was composed, written and performed by Dhee, and co-produced with Narayanan and Aditya Ravindran.

## Discography
### Singles
#### As lead artist

| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Title | Year | UK Asian | Album |
| "Enjoy Enjaami" (feat. Arivu, produced by Santhosh Narayanan) | 2021 | 5 | Non-album single |

#### As playback singer

| Year | Song title | Film | Music Director | Notes |
| 2013 | "Disco Woman" | Pizza II: Villa | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2014 | "Enda Mapla" | Cuckoo | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2014 | "Naan Nee" | Madras | Santhosh Narayanan | co-artist Shakthisree Gopalan Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Female Playback Singer Nominated—Vijay Award for Best Female Playback Singer |
| 2016 | "Ey Sandakaara" | Irudhi Suttru | Santhosh Narayanan | Nominated—SIIMA Award for Best Female Playback Singer |
| 2016 | "Usuru Narumbeley" | Irudhi Suttru | Santhosh Narayanan | Nominated—SIIMA Award for Best Female Playback Singer |
| 2016 | "Thoondil Meen" | Kabali | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2016 | "Dushta" | Iraivi | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2017 | "Oo Sakkanoda" | Guru | Santhosh Narayanan | Telugu |
| 2017 | "Gundelothulalo" | Guru | Santhosh Narayanan | Telugu |
| 2017 | "Rathina Katti" | Meyaadha Maan | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2018 | "Kannamma Kannamma" | Kaala | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2018 | "Maadila Nikkura Maanutty" | Vada Chennai | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2018 | "Rowdy Baby" | Maari 2 | Yuvan Shankar Raja | Nominated - Filmfare Award South for Best Female Playback Singer Won - SIIMA Award for Best Female Playback Singer |
| 2019 | "Vaanil Irul" | Nerkonda Paarvai | Yuvan Shankar Raja | |
| 2019 | "Idharkuthaan" | Bigil | A. R. Rahman | |
| 2020 | "Yedho Maayam" | Dagaalty | Vijay Narain | Lyrics by Subu |
| 2020 | "Manamengum Maaya Oonjal" | Gypsy | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2020 | "Kaattu Payale" | Soorarai Pottru | G. V. Prakash Kumar | Won - SIIMA Award for Best Female Playback Singer Won - Filmfare Award South for Best Female Playback Singer |
| 2020 | "Kaatuka Kanule" | Aakasam Nee Haddu Raa | G. V. Prakash Kumar | Telugu |
| 2020 | "Rakita Rakita Rakita" | Jagame Thandhiram | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2021 | "Uttradheenga Yeppov" | Karnan | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2022 | "Anbarey" | Gulu Gulu | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2023 | "Chamkeela Angeelesi" | Dasara | Santhosh Narayanan | Telugu |
| 2023 | "Mainaru Vetti Katti" | Dasara | Santhosh Narayanan | Tamil version |
| 2023 | "Jujubee" | Jailer | Santhosh Narayanan | Anirudh Ravichander |
| 2023 | "Maamadura" | Jigarthanda DoubleX | Santhosh Narayanan | |
| 2024 | "Kombari Vettapuli" | Captain Miller | G. V. Prakash Kumar | |
| 2024 | "Viduthal" | Anweshippin Kandethum | Santhosh Narayanan | Malayalam |
| 2024 | "Ta Takkara" | Kalki 2898 AD | Santhosh Narayanan | Telugu |
| 2024 | "Thenkizhakku" | Vaazhai | Santhosh Narayanan | Tamil |
| 2024 | "Yennai Izhukkuthadi" | Kadhalikka Neramillai | A. R. Rahman | Tamil |
| 2024 | "Nain Matakka" | Baby John | Thaman S | Hindi debut |