Indian rock has been a men's room for most of its history. The festival line-ups, the band photos and the "legendary bands" lists are mostly men. Women have been there throughout, though: fronting bands, playing guitar and bass, writing songs and taking Indian rock abroad. This guide is about rock: bands and players in rock, blues, metal and their electronic edges. Our broader Indian female indie artists feature covers singer-songwriters and pop, and our Indian women rappers guide covers hip-hop. We try not to repeat those lists here.
The rules: released work only, release details from Apple Music India (checked 28 October 2026), and biographical facts only where Wikipedia or our own live artist pages support them. Where we couldn't confirm a name's catalogue, we left it out. This list is shorter than it should be for that reason, and we'll add to it as we verify more.
Tipriti Kharbangar: Soulmate (Shillong)
Soulmate is a blues-rock band from Shillong, built around Tipriti "Tips" Kharbangar (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriting) and Rudy Wallang (vocals, lead guitar, songwriting), with session players filling out the line-up on tour. The band came together in February 2003, and played its first concert at the Roots Festival at Umiam.
Soulmate is one of the few Indian blues bands with a real international record. They represented India at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in 2007 and 2010, and have played festivals in Kathmandu, Singapore, Dubai and Jakarta and at the Kennedy Center's Maximum India festival in Washington DC (2011). In the 2009 Jack Daniel's Rock Awards, Kharbangar won Best Female Vocalist.
Where to listen. Apple Music India lists the albums Shillong and Moving On (2009), and the album Give Love (2020), which was preceded that year by the singles "Garden", "63rd st." and "Give Love". Read the Soulmate artist page, plus our Northeast India music icons and Shillong music scene pieces for context.
Mohini Dey: bass
Mohini Dey, born in 1996 and raised in Mumbai, is a bass player with an international profile. Wikipedia notes her work on Coke Studio India and with A.R. Rahman, and reports that in 2024 she joined Willow Smith's band. She also plays in the trio MaMoGi with drummer Gino Banks.
Where to listen. Her self-titled debut album came out in August 2023, and The Dey Way followed in July 2026. Apple also lists her as a featured player on Chandresh Kudwa's Free Spirit (2018, with Gino Banks) and on several singles by Abhijith P. S. Nair and Sandeep Mohan, among them "Saraswati at Montreux" (2017, with Dave Weckl) and "Sa Ma Ga Pa" (2019, with Simon Phillips). She's proof that Indian rock and fusion's instrumental chops aren't only male.
Somlata: Somlata and the Aces (Kolkata)
Somlata Acharyya Chowdhury is a Bengali singer who rose to fame with songs from the 2011 film Ranjana Ami Ar Ashbona and has sung in Bengali films since 2007. Alongside film work she releases her own material with her band, Somlata and the Aces: a woman-fronted band in a city whose band canon is overwhelmingly male. She also teaches psychology at Asutosh College, Kolkata.
Where to listen. The band's Apple catalogue is a run of singles: "Amar Bhitor O Bahire" (July 2018), "Kaa Karoon Sajni" (August 2018), "Yaad Piya Ki Aye" (September 2018), "Naina Morey" (2019), "O Je Mane Na Mana" (2020), "Nishitho Raater" (2021) and "Uthe Darao Aaj" (September 2026). For the city's band history, read Kolkata music scene: Bengali bands.
Monica Dogra: Shaa'ir + Func (Mumbai)
Monica Dogra formed the electro-rock duo Shaa'ir + Func with Randolph Correia in Mumbai in 2007. She's already covered in our Indian female indie artists feature, so we'll keep this short. Apple Music India carries the duo's Mantis (2010) and Re:cover (2014). She also hosted four seasons of the music documentary series The Dewarists.
Women in Indian metal, post-rock and alt
Indian metal has a small but real number of women in bands, as vocalists and as players. We'll add names here only when their releases are confirmed on the public catalogue. Meanwhile, see Indian metal bands and Indian death metal bands.
The shoegaze and dream-pop corner of the scene has been more open. See our Indian shoegaze bands feature for the acts involved.
What still needs fixing
- Line-ups. Festival bills still have very few women in rock slots. Count them on any poster.
- Gear and rooms. Jam rooms and rehearsal spaces can be unwelcoming. Our jam room cost guide lists what to look for.
- Coverage. Magazines, us included, have written more about men in rock. This page is one step toward fixing that.
- Catalogues. Some of the most important women in Indian rock have little or nothing on streaming. That makes them easy to leave out of lists like this one, and it's worth artists and labels fixing.
If you play in a woman-fronted or woman-led rock band with released music, submit it. Coverage is unpaid.
Where to start
- Soulmate, Moving On
- Mohini Dey, Mohini Dey
- Somlata and the Aces, "Amar Bhitor O Bahire"
- Shaa'ir + Func, Mantis
FAQ
Who are the best-known women in Indian rock? Tipriti Kharbangar of Soulmate and Monica Dogra of Shaa'ir + Func are two of the most widely recognised. Bassist Mohini Dey has an international profile.
Has an Indian blues band competed internationally? Yes. Soulmate represented India at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in 2007 and 2010.
Is this the same as the Indian female indie artists list? No. That list covers singer-songwriters and pop. This one is about rock bands and players.
How can women-led rock bands get covered? Through Submit. We review released music, and coverage is unpaid.
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