We are pleased to announce that Samar Mehdi is our latest signing to the Anara Publishing roster. Based in Bhopal, in the Madhya Pradesh region of India, Samar is a singer/songwriter who writes and performs music in a format called ‘percussive fingerstyle’ which essentially means that he emulates the sound of an entire band on his acoustic guitar. He had his heart set on music from an early age and would learn instruments secretly at school without his parents’ knowledge, starting with the snare drum in the school marching band and then the flute and saxophone. At the same time, Samar secretly installed music production software onto his father’s computer and would teach himself music arrangement whilst no-one was at home. After also learning the keyboard, Samar eventually found his way to the guitar and has since quickly emerged as one of the best guitarists from his region.
Samar released his debut solo EP ‘Urooj‘ in 2018 which introduced the varied richness of Samar’s songwriting, with the 5 songs revolving around the question of “what gives meaning to your life?”. The follow up was 2019’s ‘Guruub‘ which draws inspiration from the realisation that not everything that exists or happens has a reason or meaning and deals with the acceptance and acknowledgement of this feeling. Samar has since released two singles, Sukoon (2020) and Martbaan (2021), and is working on new music to follow.
Before embarking on his solo career, Samar was part of the 5-piece metal band Acrimony until their hiatus in 2011 as well as the alternative rock band Ferryclock Yarns.
On joining the Anara roster, Samar said “I believe joining Anara marks the beginning of a new chapter in my career, transitioning from ‘the grind’ to a point where I feel things are now in place for me to reach for the stars. I felt that spark in my conversations with the Anara team and their collaborators, the kind which convinces you that someone shares your joy in creative work and more importantly, believes in you and is willing to take genuine stakes in what you do. From this point on, apart from carrying on the work that I have been doing as an independent songwriter, I am now looking forward to expand and diversify my work more in spaces like Sync Licensing, and I can’t wait to work with Anara on all of these fronts!”
Deborah Smith, Director of Anara Publishing, added “We’re so excited to be working with someone as talented as Samar. He adds something really unique to our roster and we can’t wait to share his music with all of our clients and peers!”
To discuss collaborations with Samar Mehdi or for licensing one of his tracks for your production, please get in touch with the Anara Publishing team.