Folk artistes compose songs to spread awareness on Covid-19

Hubballi: In addition to carrying the essence of the region in their songs, folk artistes have always tried to incorporate into their works the essence of the times. Members of the Talemaaru Kutir culture troupe of Hulimangala in Kolar’s Malur taluk have done exactly this. They are composing songs on the pandemic, coming to the streets with the ekadaari instrument strumming to the words ‘Corona bantu nodanna...,’ hearing which brings people out of their homes to offer foodgrains to the performers.
Vaddagere Nagarajaiah, the singer, is accompanied by Jayamala MC, a human rights activist and writer Padmalaya Nagaraj, are using folk music to raise awareness about the pandemic. Furthermore, the foodgrains that the trio collects are given away to the 30 students who are an extended part of the team. “We take no more than a handful of grains, and never more than Rs 50 person from one household. So far, we have composed 10 songs to raise awareness on Covid-19,” he added.
The Malur troupe’s songs on Covid-19 are not an isolated set. The cyberspace is swarming with videos of Kannada folk songs on the pandemic. Perhaps it is ironic that the songs– dollina pada, riwayat songs, etc., – are turning into carriers of misinformation about the pandemic that the social media abounds with.
For instance, among the songs that has attained a considerable amount of popularity on social media is ‘Corona roga odi bandaite/ Chinadinda jigidu bandaite (Corona has come running/ It has hopped into our country from China)’, a composition by comedian Mallapa Honga, popular among his fans as Mobile Malla. The song has reached more than 10,000 people on Facebook, and is being shared on other portals. “I have composed eight songs on Corona and all of them have been received well by listeners,” Mallappa said.
A young folk singer Gavisiddayya Hallikerimath, based in Gadag, has been singing ‘Manava nee jagrutanaagu/ Corona bandaite’. The song has helped drive the message on the need to maintain hygiene to his many listeners. Vijayapura’s Sadev Mastar Devanagan is another folk artiste who has incorporated corona as a motif in his songs.
Meanwhile, a song by Sumitra Yellappa Dalawai of Savadatti taluk, a Dollina pada artiste, ‘Sulle madabyadao kalaharana/ Barataiti corona’ has gone viral on WhatsApp. “I wanted to record the song in a studio but could not do so owing to the lockdown, so I decided to record it on the phone and circulate it on WhatsApp,” she said.
Folklore enthusiast Arun Joladkudligi said that these songs had helped mitigate the damage caused by circulation of fake news on social media. “But it’s sad that some folk songs are also promoting myths about the pandemic,” he added.