Meet Kashmiri Rapper Mehak

It was not easy for 21-year-old Mehak to convince her parents to support her dream of becoming a rapper. The Kashmiri couple told her that doing so would “bring disgrace to our family,” Mehak told the FBomb.

Mehak first discovered her love of rap at 12 when she came across a song by Eminem on YouTube. She started researching rap culture and began listening to other rappers like Nicki Minaj, Drake, and 50 Cent. But Eminem’s story particularly inspired her because his music pushed back on white supremacy and injustice.

In 2016, protests arose in Kashmir after the militant commander Burhan Wani was killed by government forces. Schools shut down for six months, and that lockdown, as well as witnessing protests, "“ignited a flame” in Mehak. She decided to try rapping herself to express the struggles of the people around her. She chose the stage name “Menime,” the reverse of “Eminem,” to honor that rapper’s similar mission. She began rapping about gender inequality, political injustice, and other prevalent social issues.

In 2017, RJ Sameen — a DJ of a popular local radio channel who is known for giving budding performers a platform — started playing her music. Mehak has been emerging as an exciting new voice in hip-hop ever since.

While a young audience appreciates her, she still faces struggles in male-dominated Kashmiri society. "“I still do face a lot of criticism and even abuse on social media by men who consider themselves preachers,” she told the FBomb. “Many Kashmiri men want to see women confined to the four walls of the home and doing household chores,” she added.

Her family wasn’t immediately supportive, either, but eventually realized that “my love for rap is divine,” and their support ultimately “helped me to blaze the trail,” Mahek said.

Mahek has composed 15 songs to date, but producing and recording a song in Kashmir is expensive. Recording one song at one of the handful of recording studios in the area costs between 4,000-5,000 rupees.

But despite the expense, Mahek persists because while she “might not earn a hefty amount,” rapping “gives me peace and tranquility.”

Mahek wants to be a trailblazer for the next generation of female rappers; she wants them to take up hip-hop music and express their lived experiences. She believes that music is an effective form of peaceful resistance that can transcend borders and be very impactful.

Mehak is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Arts from a local women’s college in Srinagar and took a break from 2020 through 2021 to focus on her studies, but she is ready to make a comeback; she is currently recording some new songs.