S8 Ep3: The Sound of Solidarity: Men, Music & Social Change

What if more men chose to speak up? What if more men chose to stand up? What if we stopped seeing domestic violence as “someone else’s problem”? 💜

In our latest episode of Between Friends: Conversations with Maitri, host Nandini Ray talks with Sunil Ramesh, Ritesh Nayak, and Vasant Balasubramanian of BOOMM—three men who have been standing with Maitri through music and community support since 2013. 🎙️

They talk about why they choose to stand against domestic violence and gender-based violence, how men can help prevent violence, and why creating safer, healthier communities is everyone’s responsibility. Their message is an important one: Men can speak up when harmful behavior is normalized. They can challenge attitudes that excuse violence. They can model healthy relationships. And they can use their voices, talents, and influence to support change.

💜 This conversation is a call to action—especially for men—to move from silence to solidarity.

Our Guests are:

Sunil Ramesh: By day, Sunil Ramesh is a technology leader at Roku, building next-generation experiences across AI, media, and consumer technology. By night, he trades product roadmaps for power notes as BOOMM’s lead vocalist, bringing serious range, energy, and stage presence to the band. Equal parts technologist, music obsessive, and frontman, Sunil is proof that some people really do have a second gear.

Ritesh Nayak: Ritesh Nayak is a technologist, entrepreneur, and musician whose work spans AI, consumer technology, and the performing arts. A former Google product leader and startup founder, he is currently building ventures focused on AI, deep learning, and traditional arts. An accomplished Hindustani classical vocalist, guitarist, percussionist, and producer, Ritesh brings his genre-crossing musical energy to BOOMM.

Vasant Balasubramanian: In the corporate world, Vasant leads the Risk business at ServiceNow, helping enterprises bring a little order to the wonderfully chaotic world of AI, risk, and governance.

On stage, he is BOOMM’s resident bassist, laying down the deep grooves that keep the band—and occasionally the audience—moving. Equal parts business leader, technologist, and bass obsessive, Vasant has spent decades managing risk at work while taking considerably more of it on stage. Host: Nandini Ray, Sr. Manager, Outreach, Prevention and Policy Advocacy, Maitri. Upcoming Concert of BOOMM: Rocke De BOOMM Returns! Friday, Oct 23, 2026, 7PM @ the De Anza College- Visual & Performing Arts Center.

Ticket Link: https://secure.swirepay.com/event-page/eventpage-b2ffaee66fc94240b47d4c3ca0f38cdc