“We want to talk about everything a woman goes through. We are here to make a community and make women feel heard.” An all-women hip-hop collective from Mumbai, Wild Wild Women (WWW), are set to perform at the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art Music Fest on 9th October 2025. In a conversation with DU Beat, they talked about breaking stereotypes in a male-dominated industry. In the quest to create music that is rooted in lived experiences, community, and empowerment, WWW emerges as a voice of hope, aspirations, and revolution for women in Indian hip-hop.
The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art will inaugurate its Music Festival on October 9, 2025, a four-day celebration of India’s musical diversity, featuring ten exceptional artists from across the country. As part of this vibrant lineup, Wild Wild Women will take the stage on the opening day, and we had the opportunity to speak with the collective about their journey, music, and message before their live performance.
Question: ‘Wild Wild Women’ is definitely a name to remember. Can you tell us the story behind it, who came up with it and what inspired it?
Pratika: The name kind of resonates with us as people who love being wild and free. It didn’t come from anything specific; Krantinari and HashtagPreeti just kind of conjured it out of thin air, and it stuck. It always reminds me of the Wild Wild West in a way. And yeah, we’re from the west coast of India, so there’s that little connection too. But ‘Wild Wild Women’ just felt apt for us, not just a single ‘wild’, but ‘wild wild’ to really emphasise how free-spirited and bold we are!
Question: Hip hop has traditionally been a male-dominated field. What has the experience of breaking into the industry as an all-women collective been like? Have you encountered stereotyping, and if so, how have you navigated it?
MC Mahila: Hip-hop has always been a male-dominated industry, and it’s been that way for a long time. But this power we have as Wild Wild Women—when we come together—it just turns all those barriers into dust. We’ve seen people throw hate at us just because we started as an all-female crew. They were scared we’d flip the game… and we did flip the game. We pushed through all those outdated norms that said women can’t work together for long, that it won’t last. We’ve even had people comment on our bodies, saying we don’t fit in, that we’re ‘too big’ or whatever. But by ignoring all that negativity, we rose above it; we made more music, we stayed together, and we flipped the game. That’s exactly what our track ‘Game Flip’ is about; it’s our statement that we’re here, and we’re changing the game.
Question: Where do you see the hip hop scene in India heading? Artistically, what do you feel Wild Wild Women brings to the current scene?
#HashtagPreeti: The hip-hop scene is heading towards a really important milestone. A few years ago, or even before that, hip-hop was seen as something very male-dominated. If you thought of a rapper, you’d automatically picture a man. It was hard for people to imagine women in that space. Back then, a lot of male rappers only talked about parties, alcohol, girls, bling, and that whole luxurious lifestyle. But that’s not the full picture. Hip-hop actually comes from the grassroots—it’s about street culture, about real life. In India, hip-hop has brought attention to street artists and communities and to all the elements: skateboarding, beatboxing, graffiti, rap, and knowledge. Hip-hop is no longer just a sub-genre. It’s at the forefront now. It’s what people are listening to.
That’s where WWW comes in. We bring something that’s never been on the table before, something that was needed. We’re here to change the narrative that women can’t be rappers. But honestly, you can only really understand what WWW brings when you experience it in person. We’re not just five rappers on a stage. What we do makes people think about society, about gender, and about how they see women. I can’t put it into just a few words. You have to hear the lyrics. You have to watch the show.
Question: Wild Wild Women is often highlighted as an all-women collective with a focus on empowering women of all ages. Do you ever feel pressure to create art specifically with this purpose in mind? Does it ever feel limiting to your artistic expression?
HashtagPreeti: As Wild Wild Women, we’ve kept everything open for ourselves creatively. It’s not just about WWW; we each also work on and release our individual projects. But as a collective, we do stick to certain topics, because that’s our purpose. If no one else is going to talk about these issues, then we will. And it never feels like pressure. All our artistic expression finds its way into both our personal lives and our music.
Honestly, it takes a village to do what we do, especially in a country like India, where very few women and girls have a platform like this. We know how lucky we are to have this opportunity, and we don’t take it for granted. Also, we’re not limiting ourselves to just women empowerment as a theme. We’re experimenting and exploring a lot more; we want to talk about everything a woman goes through. We’re here to build a community, to make women feel seen and heard.
Question: What has been Wild Wild Women’s main inspiration in creating music? Are there any specific artists or voices that have been our go-tos?
JQueen: I’d say our biggest inspiration is Wild Wild Women itself. Even though we’re five female rappers, along with two breakdancers, a mural artist, and a skateboarder, all our goals are aligned; we know where we want to go, and we’re pushing to get there.
We’re not just rappers; we’re messengers of the people. Each of us is an individual artist with our own identity, but we always come together under one roof. We understand each other, we lift each other up, and we make sure everyone’s goals are supported. In the beginning, it wasn’t easy. Not everyone wanted to help us. But now, we’ve created our own space, and we’re killing it. And we always knew we would.
Right now, it’s India… But soon, it’s going to be international. Wild Wild Women is coming your way—so get ready to handle the heat!
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Image Credits: Wild Wild Women
Anjali Paruvu and Anjali Kumari Jha
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