Premiere: Hyderabad Artist Peekay Yearns for a ‘Squeaky Clean’ Life in New Video

Hyderabad singer-songwriter Peekay aka Pranati Khanna looks back at the simpler times of yore on her latest song “Squeaky Clean.” Produced by her go-to collaborator Jonathan Edward, the song comes with a summery music video directed by Prerna Kolluri in which the artists take a day off to reminisce about childhood and feel playful in a garden.

The lo-fi pop production and Peekay’s reggae-informed vocals remain a distinctive touch from her previous material that’s carried forward on to “Squeaky Clean” as well. Khanna sings to offer a mantra of her own on the musing song, “Trust your heart/Know your mind/Play your part/Do your time.”

She says in a statement about the track, “There comes a time in every adult’s life where they wish they could turn back the clock and start all over. Perhaps life has left you jaded, worn out and bitter. Imagine if you could re-live your childhood. When your soul was untouched, your path clear, your future a mystery and your mind was pure.”

“Squeaky Clean,” then, is the artist’s way of wishing to go back to a simpler time. “Where it was just the grass on my toes and a game of catch or playing with dolls would make up my day. I miss a time where my slate was squeaky clean,” she says. While reality is much more complicated, Khanna says she’s found her own way to practice what she sings. “I know that if I can channel my inner child, wash off my darkness and focus on the sunlight, I can always have a fresh start and a new beginning. This is my affirmation.”

The English pop song is Peekay’s second release this year, following “Sunshine on the Street,” a collaboration with Shillong artist and actor-model Andrea Tariang for queer pride. This latest track and music video also arrives in advance of two festival appearances for the Hyderabad artist. Peekay will perform Bacardi NH7 Weekender on November 25th in Pune and at Echoes of Earth Festival in Bengaluru between December 3rd and 4th.

Watch the video for “Squeaky Clean” below.