Composer, producer, guitarist and singer. Heartfelt yet cinematic Malayalam music, living in two worlds: a sunlit Day and a neon Night.
Ashwin Syam is a composer, producer, guitarist and singer, born in Kerala and raised across India, who found his way back to his mother tongue through music. He crafts heartfelt yet cinematic Malayalam music drawn from life’s moments, ranging from a father penning a letter to his newborn, to a husband’s first tears in 50 years, at his wife’s passing.
Five songs released, eight new Malayalam songs in the works across Day and Night, and live sets coming up at Hideaway, Goa and Bonobo, Mumbai that travel from daylight into dark.
Part of the first regional cohort of the Amplify Music Incubator, backed by Believe, TuneCore and Think Music.
Named by TuneCore for its Sound of the South campaign, with billboards across Kochi.
Live sets built like the catalogue itself: warm, organic openings that descend into neon, synth-driven night.
Ashwin builds each song its own world, and every world begins with a life that actually happened.
A father pens a letter to his newborn daughter.
“Chekkeru Nee” · his most beloved lullabyA boy studies through his grief, raising his marks to the sky for his grandmother.
“Nere Nere” · moving straight aheadA husband’s first tears in 50 years, at his wife’s passing.
Barsaat · the animated musical
A melody Ashwin composed became a six-minute animated film he co-created: writing the story, composing and producing the music, and guiding a crew of thirty artists over seven years. It grew from watching his grandfather learn to live on after his grandmother’s passing.
Ram Mohan Viewer’s Choice Award, AniFest India, and festival selections in India, Greece and Portugal.
Released with its own song: “Barsaat”, the film’s heart in Hindi.
His love story with his partner became Nau Saal, a 170-page graphic novel written in a single night as a gift, released with its own song. Nine years, one love story: drawn, lettered and scored.
Featured on the BBC Asian Network and Kerala’s radio waves, Ashwin also co-hosts Before the Beat Drops, a podcast about the stories before each song, with his wife Christina Pothen.
Sunlit and organic: warm, piano- and guitar-led songs wrapped in his trademark ambient textures, with animated visuals painting a world full of hope.
Neon and electronic: sombre, modern, intense; synth-driven, shot in live action.
The signature: 800K+ streams and more than 1,300 fan-made reels. Lost in the moment with a loved one.
A duet about first love, carrying lyrics by the legendary poet Rafeeq Ahammed.
His most beloved lullaby, grown from a friend’s letter to his newborn daughter, now sung to babies around the world.
Stuck in a loop. Won Best Music Producer (Independent) at the IRAA Awards, the award going to Nived NP.
Moving straight ahead, past the old scars. Shot in live action, neon to the bone.
Mourning, nine years of love, and the animated musical’s heart.
Ashwin made his feature film debut with the title track of the Telugu film Nee Dhaarey Nee Katha, later performed by A.R. Rahman’s Sunshine Orchestra. He has sound-designed more than 30 films for The Wedding Filmer, India’s biggest wedding film company, and composed for brands including Toyota Japan, Yamaha and Asian Paints.
TuneCore’s Sound of the South campaign put the Face of Malayalam Independent Music on the city’s skyline. Coverage spans the IRAA Awards, AniFest India, and radio play from Kerala’s Club FM and Red FM to the BBC Asian Network.
Press clippings, radio segments and the full coverage archive live on the website’s media desk.
IRAA Awards · AniFest India · ashwinsyam.com/media
Photographs for editorial, flyers and PR. High-resolution versions and live performance video available on request.
All links are clickable. Full technical and hospitality riders, high-res photographs and live video are available on request.