Hey, I'm Vidya Ram. I am a Singer/Songwriter who has recently moved to Bangalore. I've grown up in Muscat Oman. I am also a pianist and an amateur guitarist. I chose to be a musician because ever since I can remember, I've always been musically inclined. Even before I knew there were so many different streams and genres of music, I would always find myself humming tunes I would hear on the radio and try to play them on the single-octave kid's keyboard I had growing up. As is the case with anyone fighting hard to follow their passion, I too had my own struggles on my journey to becoming a musician. My biggest struggle happened to be the lack of support from my family in my pursuit of western music except for my mother and sister. They were my rock. Had it not been for them, I wouldn't even be where I am right now. But everyone else around me constantly put me down and listed out a zillion reasons as to why I'm definitely going to fail. There were times when I would be threatened that my guitar would be broken if I don't adhere to the "rules of the house" which roughly translated to "Give up Western Music, Or else....". Coming from an orthodox family, western music was a HUGE taboo! Another struggle is that since being a full time musician takes a lot of time to reach its fruition, like the rest of us, I also had to pay my dues and work my share of unfulfilling jobs with horrible bosses. With all of this, there came a moment when I almost gave up because as a young adult who lacks the maturity to handle it, I felt I was all alone. I felt it was just me against the rest of the world. But the unconditional support of my mother and sister and that constant voice in my head kept me going and made me get out of the abyss I was in at the time. Thanks to them, I never gave up. Struggles, heartbreak and constant disappointment became second nature to me. But then I believe everything happens for a reason..that all these struggles only make us stronger and better equipped to face the harsh world. It also teaches us who is our real well wisher and who isn't. I learnt that good things come to those who dare enough to go out and fiercely chase their dreams no matter what. Like Kelly Clarkson did. She gave me the hop that anyone, even a waitress from a small town can make it big if they only had the perseverance and positivity to keep going forward and never turn back. This is why I look up to her. I guess what I'm really trying to say is, music is an emotion. It doesn't need a language and it doesn't discriminate based on caste, creed, race or sex. But it brings people together and there's no better therapist than music. So to all those budding artists there, never give up....because music is worth the wait.