Singer Anup Jalota is keeping himself very busy during the lockdown. While his Bhajans are being played across Hindu homes in India and abroad,Anup has joined hands with 210 other singers for what we can ‘safely’ consider the ultimate lockdown song.
Shedding light on the grand project Anup Jalota who is unofficially designated Bhajan Samrat of Hindustan says, “The idea for the song came from several brainstorming and jamming sessions on telephone and video conferencing. It’s a song entitled Jayatu Jayatu Bharatam. It is composed by Shankar Mahadevan and the words are written by Prasoon Joshi.”
Aur mazey ki baat yeh hai ke iss gaane mein 211 gaaayak hai.
“Jee haan, there are 211 of us singing in this historic song. I am happy to inform you that Asha Bhosleji has also sung with us, and what a privilege to have her enthusiastic vocal presence at her age. She is incredibly motivating. We all sang our lines from our homes which were then merged into one free-flowing stream of collective emotions,” says Anup who feels music has the power to heal during these troubled times.
“We all need hope. We all need to believe in that dawn after a dark night. Our song Jayatu Jayatu Bharatam will hopefully provide that hope,” says Jalota.
All the proceeds from this historic song will go to needy singers.
Says Anup, “The song is an initiative of the Indian Singers Rights Association. So much is done for lyric writers by the Indian Performing Rights Society Ltd. But nothing is done for singers. We feel it’s time we did something for our fellow-singers specially at a time like this when many singers are jobless.”