‘I am not a hijab girl, I am a rapper,’ says Saniya, who is all set to release her first EP

Saniya MQ gears up to release her debut EP

Every rap song of Saniya Kaiyumuddin Mistri (Saniya MQ) revolves around politics, gender equality, social biases, corruption and poverty. On a rainy day, as I walk around the narrow alleys of Shivaji Nagar in Mumbai’s Govandi area, I see people busy covering the roofs of their houses with plastic sheets. A few children help me locate Saniya’s house. I could hear the youngster rapping even as her mother is busy cleaning rice on a bamboo sieve. An excited Saniya, along with her 13-year-old brother, welcomes me.

As we sit down to talk, the 17-year-old hip hop artiste reveals that she is working on an EP with a team of underground rappers and beat producers. Titled Sheher, it has six tracks of which four are sung by Saniya. “We expect Sheher to be out this year. The EP speaks of the people in Mumbai and the problems and challenges they face. None of the artistes have been paid. It is made with the support of each one us,” says Saniya, who plans to share the story about the making of the EP once it is released on YouTube and other streaming platforms.

Her slow-paced raps have been easier for listeners to understand and rap along. But for the EP, Saniya has stepped out of her comfort zone to try rapping fast. “As an artiste, I don’t want to limit myself. I am game for rapping in different rhythms.”

For the past three years, Saniya has been meeting hip-hop artistes, beat producers, and sound engineers for this project. “I have met them at shows, and on Instagram. I have collaborated with some of them earlier. The discussion started a month ago and everybody agreed to come on board.”

Saniya was only 13 when she began keeping a diary of poetry and also wrote about issues that affected her. “I was five when my family moved into Govandi. Initially, we faced rejection. I experienced loneliness in my childhood. Today the same children, who once used to bully me call themselves my friends.”

Through her raps, Saniya raises questions about the education system that is not equal for all. “If we have a free education system, then every child in this country will get to learn and earn a living for himself/herself. Policymakers are aware of this fact but nobody wants to change it,” says Saniya, who emphasises that she is not an activist but an artiste.

Talking about her recent rap that she posted on Instagram, she says, “Sirpihiri narrates many stories from my life. There was a friend in school who had said I can never rap, some said I have no dress sense since I do not wear modern clothes. One of my raps talks about this. ‘Jo kehte hai dressing sense nahi, dikhti hun bas wahi kaafi hai…’ (those who say I have no dress sense, I am seen and that is enough). To those who gave her the ‘hijab girl’ tag, Saniya says, “When we do not call a rapper in a hoodie a ‘hoodie boy/man/rapper’ then why make a big deal about my hijab.”