Three Years, One Night: Ram Miriyala Finally Came to the Bay Area, and it Was Worth Every Second

Ram Miriyala has one of those voices you could listen to forever, and on Friday night at the India Community Center in Milpitas, the Bay Area finally got to hear it live.

For three years, I had been waiting for Ram Miriyala to perform anywhere close enough for me to be in that room. He came to the Bay in 2023, but I was a junior in college, busy with classes, and I was so disappointed to miss out. After that came three years of listening to his playlist on repeat, watching every performance I could find, and being the person in my family who would not stop talking about him. So when I found out he was coming to the India Community Center in Milpitas, organized by the Bay Area Telugu Association, I didn’t hesitate for a single second.

Friday night, he finally showed up. And somehow, it was even better than I had imagined.

I was lucky enough to be right at the barricade the entire night and didn’t move an inch. Before Ram even took the stage, an opener got the room warmed up nicely. And then, because this was a Telugu event and we do things properly, an MC came out and had the whole crowd answering Ram Miriyala trivia while we waited. Everyone was already on their feet, already buzzing, and then he finally walked out.

A Voice You Could Listen to Forever

If you know Ram Miriyala’s music, you already know what I mean when I say his voice is something else entirely. It’s earthy and warm and completely his own, a voice that doesn’t sound like it’s performing, it’s just making you feel. Hearing it live, filling a room with a band behind him, was an experience that I couldn’t have prepared for.

I went with my family that night, my mom, my brother, and my dad. My dad isn’t his biggest fan, but by the end of the night, all three of them were blown away. He even turned to me and said he was an incredible singer live. When the people who weren’t already obsessed walk out of the concert, blown away, you know he’s a special performer.

The India Community Center is not Madison Square Garden, but I promise you that room felt just as alive. There was a seated section and a dance floor, and by the end of the night, nobody could stay in their chairs. Everyone was dancing, everyone was screaming, everyone knew every word. Ram handled it brilliantly, working with every bit of the energy rather than fighting it.

Ram Miriyala moved through his setlist effortlessly, giving the crowd exactly what they came for. He opened with his independent hits like “Layilo” and “Maya,”  and moved into a few playback tracks. “Chitti” already being one of my favorites, I was not expecting him to pull out a flute mid-song, but he did, and it was stunning. And then the second half turned into a full dance floor with his biggest hits, high-energy covers like “Gang Leader” and “Dayi Dayi Dhamma,” and his most iconic playback tracks like “DJ Tillu” (which he also music directed, making the song even more his than most people realize) and “Radhika” from the same movie.

The People I Wasn’t Expecting to Watch

I had waited three years to watch Ram Miriyala, and I was fully prepared to be there for him and him alone. I was not prepared for Krishna Bharadwaj and what he did with that stage.

He was playing guitar, singing, dancing, and then took the stage completely alone during Ram’s breaks and held the entire room by himself. No matter how long he had been performing, his energy didn’t drop once. He didn’t miss a note. I couldn’t take my eyes off him the entire night. And we couldn’t stop talking about him after the show. He’s a performer who makes you feel like what you’re watching is somehow effortless, even when you know it absolutely isn’t.

He put the whole night into words better than I could:

“The US tour has been an amazing experience for us. Every city has had its own energy, but the love for music has felt universal everywhere. Touring with Ram Miriyala has made it even more special because every performance turns into this explosive celebration of folk, regional culture, and pure live energy. Seeing audiences here sing, dance, and connect to our music so deeply is something we’ll never forget.”

The band was also incredible and deserved every bit of love the audience gave them. Akshay Athreya on percussion, Ricky on drums, Vashni on guitar, George Jubal on bass, and Marcos on keys, each got a well-deserved solo, and every single one of them blew us away.

And then, the moment that might have been the best thing I saw all night: Akshay and Ricky left their positions, picked up dappus, and started playing together at the front of the stage. If you know, you know. If you don’t, you can watch the video because there is no way to do it justice in words. It was loud and joyful and completely explosive in the best possible way, dripping with Telugu energy that made the whole room erupt.

Regional Artists Deserve Their Flowers

Ram Miriyala may not be headlining arenas the way Diljit Dosanjh or Arijit Singh do. His name may not show up on the same festival lineups, and the venues may not hold the same number of people. But watching that room on Friday night, I knew his impact was no less significant.

The people in that crowd weren’t casual listeners. They were people with these songs saved in every playlist, who knew every word without thinking, who didn’t need a single cue to sing along at the top of their lungs. The connection in that room was as deep as it gets. The talent on that stage was as real as it gets. There is something about being in a room full of Telugu people, listening to your favorite Telugu artist, with a Telugu MC, Telugu music, and Telugu instruments, where everyone around you is dancing to the drums, that just feels like home. Regional artists carry entire communities in their music, and that Friday night in Milpitas, a room full of people showed up to prove it. Nights like this give people a chance to celebrate the music they grew up with, explore artists who so proudly carry regional culture, and connect with a community that instantly feels like home.

I waited three years, and it was worth it. And the next time Ram Miriyala comes anywhere near the Bay, I’ll be buying tickets the second they go on sale. Again.

To see clips from the concert, follow us on Instagram!

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