France may be among the countries worst-hit by COVID-19, but a few days ago, a spirit-lifting video came from there.
Fifty-one musicians of the National Orchestra of France played Maurice Ravel’s Bolero from their homes and posted the video that has been watched by millions. Before that, a similar effort by 18 musicians of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra from the Netherlands had also caught the world’s attention.
Now closer home, playback singer K.S Chithra has put together a Malayalam song featuring 22 singers, including Sujatha, Shwetha, Devanand, Vidhu Prathap, Jyotsna, Rimi Tomy, Renjini Jose, Kavalam Sreekumar, Afsal, and Sharreth.
3.5 lakh views
That song too has gone viral. It has attracted more than 3.5 lakh views within a day on Chithra’s Facebook page. Not to mention the forwards on other social media platforms such as WhatsApp.
“More than 25 people have already forwarded the song to me on WhatsApp,” Devanand told The Hindu. “When Chithra suggested this idea on a group of singers, I liked it straight away and wanted to be a part of it,” he said.
Chithra could not have chosen a more melodious or appropriate song. Lokam muzhuvan sukham pakaran..., written by P. Bhaskaran and composed by Pukazhenthi for the 1972 film Snehadeepame Mizhi Thurakkoo, is one of the finest devotional songs in Malayalam.
It was originally sung by S. Janaki. It is one of those songs in which the singer, the lyricist and the composer are at their very best.
Lokam muzhuvan... is a prayer, beginning with lines meaning “The light of love, please open your eyes/ To give comfort to the entire world.”
Good feedback
It is one of Renjini Jose’s favourite songs and she often sings it on her live shows. “So I was glad that Chithra chose this song,” she said. “Even before that, I had selected this song when some others wanted for their campaigns during the lockdown. The feedback has been tremendous,” Renjini said.
The other singers Chithra roped in are Nishad, Sreeram, Rakesh Brahmanandan, Teenu Tellence, Ravishankar, Rajalakshmy, Akhila Anand, Sachin Warrier, Sangeetha Sreekanth, Divya Menon, and Ramesh Babu. They have all sang rather well, despite the constraints.
You won’t be disappointed by this musical treat, as you sit home.