Perhaps appropriately for the podcast’s first Dora 2025 interview, Sebi, Jan, and Dave recently spent some time chatting with the young and super-talented Ananda who is making her big Dora début in Croatia!

Ananda is a 22-year-old musician and songwriter originally from Split, Croatia, currently based in Zagreb. A versatile artist with a deep passion for music, Ananda has been involved in songwriting, performing, and music production from a young age.

With a love for Eurovision sparked by childhood memories of watching the competition with her mother, Ananda has grown into a dedicated artist who explores diverse genres and styles while drawing from a variety of influences.

Ananda’s collaboration with a Swedish production team – Andreas Björkman and Jonas Ekdahl – has resulted in multiple successes, including her participation in Dora 2025, where she has not only entered as a performer but also as a songwriter for other contestants.

Ananda’s music blends personal storytelling with cinematic emotion, showcasing her skills as both a creator and a performer. She is committed to creating music that resonates deeply with her audience while embracing the collaborative and vibrant spirit of the Eurovision community.

It might be hard to believe, but Ananda almost kept her Dora entry Lies Lay Cold to herself, until a friend changed her mind:

“I never wanted to release it. I never wanted to play it to anyone because I just kind of found it very personal. And then a friend of mine accidentally heard it… he was like, ‘No, you have to finish this, you have to write this.’… I think I probably didn’t want to do it because it was so personal and I was kind of afraid. But you know, music is personal as a form of art.”

— Ananda

Not only will this be Ananda’s début Dora as a performer, but in addition to writing her own song, she is also an author of two other songs competing in Dora 2025 (Irma’s “Enigma” and IVXN’s – “Monopol”)! We asked her what it will be like to ‘compete’ against her own songs:

“I’m just kind of very excited to be talking about them and like their experience they’re going to go through and whenever people ask me, you have three songs in Dora, I’m like, yeah, but I’m really excited for them as well because it’s their first time is the debut appearance in Dora for them as well. So, it’s just going to be really special to get to share the moment with them instead of looking at it like we’re competing against each other. […] We’re going to have so much fun and hang out all the time together and that’s, I can’t wait, honestly!”

— Ananda

Music aside, Ananda might just be the biggest Eurovision fan we’ve interviewed so far on the podcast! She’s grown up with the Contest, still follows it, and feels part of the Eurofan community:

“It’s definitely addictive. I remember watching Sanremo, watching Eurovision, watching other contests for entries for Eurovision, and now I get to be a part of one, and that’s what’s insane because I was always learning every artist by heart. Let it be Dora, let it be Sanremo or Eurovision — I was always so involved with artists watching the interviews, how they create the songs, what it’s about, even the controversies that were happening, it was always just so interesting
to me. I love the Eurovision fandom because of that because they’re so loyal,
they’re so invested.”

— Ananda

Ananda will perform Lies Lay Cold live in the Dora Semis in February, as she fights for one of just twelve spots in the Dora Grand Final!

Until then, be sure and check out the full interview with Ananda (above) to learn more about her song Lies Lay Cold, what inspired her to take part in Dora this year, and find out if her professional dancer training has made its way into her Dora staging! The episode is available now wherever you get your favourite Eurovision podcasts!

You can also check out Ananda’s impressive vocals in her cover of Barbara Pravi’s “Voilà” on her Instagram account below!

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A post shared by ananda (@anandduh)

We wish Ananda the best of luck on her Eurovision journey! Let us know in the comments and on our social media profiles @buildingbridgespod what you thought of the interview!