Kumari Suraj is a non-binary, multi-disciplinary artist, songwriter, entertainer, and cultural architect whose work has shaped underground and mainstream creative worlds for over two decades. Of West Indian, South Asian, Native American, and European heritage, Kumari’s practice is informed by a life lived across cultures, continents, and communities — and by a commitment to honouring cultural lineage while building new futures.

Working across performance, movement, music, multimedia curation, and cultural production, Kumari is widely recognised as a modern blueprint of Waacking, a queer club dance form born in the Black and Latinx gay clubs of 1970s Los Angeles. They are the founder of the world’s first queer dance festival dedicated to Waacking culture, LA’s Waack, Punk, Pose Festival (Waackfest), and a West Coast Ballroom Kiki Legend who played a foundational role in developing ballroom communities in both the Pacific Northwest and India.

An artistic force and cultural game-changer, Kumari has influenced the entertainment industry and underground cult communities alike, shaping creative ecosystems from Hollywood to Bollywood and beyond. Their contributions have been featured on HBO Max’s Legendary, the main stage of UK Black Pride, The New York Times, and Vogue India, which named them one of the “Top 50 Most Influential Global Indians.”

Across all disciplines, Kumari’s work is known for bridging worlds — centring marginalised communities, stewarding culture with integrity, and shaping spaces where creativity, care, and power coexist.