aminath hashma (a.k.a maanu)

“There is nothing more important to true growth than realizing that you are not the voice of the mind; you are the one who hears it” – Michael A. Singer, The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself

At a very young age, Hashma knew that a desk job was not her thing. She tried her hand at sales but realised it was just not within her passion. When she first started out, she wanted to do a lot of different things at once, and this was how she started playing the guitar in high school. In the end it led her to develop a keen interest about sound and audio.

In her pursuit of sound engineering, she realised that opportunities in this field in Maldives is quite scarce and a struggle. In her past experiences, she has worked backstage at various music shows and other events, helping set up the mic-ing, communicating with artists and crew in coordination.

Hashma studied for her Degree in Audio Engineering and Music Production in India and her biggest inspiration to this day remains Ravi Shankar, an Indian musician and composer, a guru best known for popularizing the Indian classical instrument Sitar all over the world. She listens to a lot of music in various genres and draws particular inspiration from Persian musicals, which despite any lyrics, builds and invokes emotions within a story like no other.

She draws inspiration from the nature around her, or elements of natural sounds modulated or synthesised as music. Every bit of sound inspires her. She dreams of pursuing sound design; including audio engineering, mixing, mastering, audio post-production, foley work, and looks forward to honing her skills at the Kaa Studio at Oaga Art Resort.

When asked what she liked most about her work at Oaga, she replied “I get to be creative and engage in setting the vibe of our guests’ holiday so that they have the best island experience ever. I work on a wide range of audio work from theatrical sounds, ambience, live sound and also work with creative professionals.”