Dheekshitha Venkadeshan, professionally known as Dhee, was born on June 26, 1998, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. She is Australian by nationality and is of Sri Lankan Tamil and Indian Tamil heritage. Her father, Venkadesan, is a Sri Lankan Tamil, while her mother, Meenakshi Iyer, is an Indian Tamil Carnatic musician. She was raised in Sydney, where she completed her schooling before later moving to Chennai, India, to pursue her music career. Dhee speaks English and Tamil fluently and has grown up immersed in both Australian and South Indian cultures. She is also the stepdaughter of acclaimed Indian music composer Santhosh Narayanan, whose guidance played an important role in her early musical journey. Her Instagram username is @dhee___, where she has over 1.4 million followers and shares updates about her music, performances, and creative projects.
Dhee began her playback singing career in 2013 with songs in Pizza II: Villa before continuing her collaboration with Santhosh Narayanan on Cuckoo (2014). Her breakthrough came with “Naan Nee” from Madras (2014), alongside Shakthisree Gopalan, earning nominations for the Filmfare Award and Vijay Award for Best Female Playback Singer. She received further critical acclaim in 2016 for “Ey Sandakaara” and “Usuru Narumbuley” from Irudhi Suttru before making her Telugu playback debut in Guru (2017). Dhee continued delivering memorable performances in films including Kaala, Vada Chennai, Nerkonda Paarvai, Bigil, Jagame Thandhiram, Karnan, Gulu Gulu, Dasara, Jailer, Jigarthanda DoubleX, Captain Miller, Kalki 2898 AD, Vaazhai, Kadhalikka Neramillai, Baby John, and Thug Life. One of her biggest commercial successes came with “Rowdy Baby” from Maari 2, sung alongside Dhanush and composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja. The music video became the most-viewed Tamil song on YouTube, surpassing 1.5 billion views.
In 2020, Dhee won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer for “Kaattu Payale” from Soorarai Pottru. She entered the independent music scene in 2021 with “Enjoy Enjaami,” featuring Arivu and produced by Santhosh Narayanan under A. R. Rahman’s Maajja label. The song became an international phenomenon, combining folk influences with contemporary production while celebrating Tamil cultural identity. She later expanded into English-language music with singles including “Can’t You Stay a Little Longer” and “I Wear My Roots Like a Medal” in 2024. In 2025, she collaborated with Ed Sheeran, Santhosh Narayanan, and Hanumankind on Play (The Remixes), further expanding her global recognition. Throughout her career, Dhee has become known for her ability to blend Indian folk traditions with contemporary pop, alternative, and independent music while collaborating with leading composers including Santhosh Narayanan, A. R. Rahman, G. V. Prakash Kumar, Anirudh Ravichander, Yuvan Shankar Raja, and Thaman S.
Outside her professional career, Dhee maintains a relatively private personal life while sharing glimpses of her creative interests through social media. She has expressed a deep appreciation for visual art, fashion, photography, travel, and cultural storytelling, often using music as a way to explore identity and heritage. Her work reflects her multicultural upbringing between Australia and South Indian traditions, and she continues to advocate for artistic experimentation and authentic self-expression. Although she occasionally shares personal moments with fans, she has not publicly confirmed any romantic relationship and generally keeps her private life away from the spotlight.