The election scene in Kerala is on song! With just a few days to go for the general election, campaigning has reached fever pitch and calling the tune are songs made for candidates contesting the election on May 16. Cash registers are jingling for song writers and recording studios as there is a rush to record songs that blow the trumpet on behalf of the candidates or poke fun at their rivals. Original tracks are few and far in between. It is parodies of popular chartbusters that provide the beat for the campaigns, right from Parassala to Palakkad.
It must be music to the ears of Nadhirshah, uncrowned king of parody, for, adding zing to this election campaign are parodies of songs from his directorial debut, Amar Akbar Anthony (AAA). A close second come songs from Odu Vadakkan Selfie, Premam , and Ennu Ninte Moideen . Parodies of Kalabhavan Mani’s folk songs are also making a mark. In Malabar, most of the campaign songs are tuned in the Mappilappattu genre.
In Thiruvananthapuram, the parody of the song ‘Manjaadum maamalayil’ from AAA is making waves and so is ‘Anthikadappurathu’ from the old movie Chamayam . ‘Premam ennal enthanu’, again from AAA, is a favourite of many of the candidates. In fact, in Kalamassery, contestants of different parties in the same constituency have chosen the song ‘Premam ennal enthanu’ but, of course, with different lyrics.
Another favourite is the foot-tapping number ‘Muthe ponne’ from Action Hero Biju.
“Usually five songs are written for one candidate. In rare cases, it can go up to 10,” says Abdul Khadar Kakkanad, a veteran in writing parodies during the election season.
“‘Premam ennal enthanu’ should be declared as THE song this time! Actually, there aren’t enough options available. The number of super hit songs has decreased and what you have are average hits,” says Abdul Khadar. He has written parodies for 40 candidates across Kerala.
Writing and recording come as a package. Many a time the candidates have no direct involvement in the making of these parodies. It is their supporters who assign the work to the studios.
Parodies of other language songs, especially Tamil (‘Aaluma doluma’ from Vethalam and ‘Naan autokkaran’ from Baasha ), are also popular. This time children are in great demand to sing the parody for the popular number ‘Enno njaanente’ in AAA.
Celebrity candidates, and there are many this time around, are also using spoofs of their songs for their campaigns. Actor Jagadeesh, contesting from Pathanapuram, had five songs written for him. One of them is ‘Unnam marannu’ from the blockbuster In Harihar Nagar [‘Chihnam marannu vottil kudungi gulumaal pattidenda’], in which he had acted. ‘Premam ennal’ has been rewritten as a conversation between a father and daughter.
Actor Mukesh, meanwhile, has stuck to film songs picturised on him for the campaign. And the brain behind that is actor and stand-up comedian Ramesh Pisharody, with whom Mukesh has been working in a popular show on television. “I wrote the songs along with my friend Sithu, recorded the tracks and handed it over to him. We have chosen his hit songs, ‘Unnam Marannu’, ‘Mayaamanchalil’, ‘Manthrikochamma’ and ‘Pookkalam vannu’. Another one is a parody of ‘Enno njaanente’ from AAA,” Ramesh says.
He adds that the lyrics were written with care. “We decided that there would be no personal attacks on the opponent. Most parody songs we hear today are meant to generate laughs by attacking the opposition, whereas we have gone in for some serious lyrics. Also, since people know that I am involved in writing the songs, I didn’t want to take a risk by destroying the goodwill I have among the audience,” says Ramesh.
So are the parodies enough to voo voters? While Abdul Khadar feels that parodies can influence the people to a great extent, Ramesh is of the opinion that parodies alone won’t help any candidate. “Voters might have already decided whom they should vote for. The songs are like a reminder of what the candidates have done and are not the last word on a person’s capability,” Ramesh says.
Meanwhile some popular singers are lending their voice for such songs used in the electioneering. Vaikom Vijayalakshmi, for instance, has sung parodies of her songs ‘Kaikkottum kandttilla’ ( Oru Vadakkan Selfie ) and ‘Saradambaram’ (Ennu Ninte Moideen) . “My condition for singing the songs was that the lyrics should say something good about the candidate and there shouldn’t be anything negative about the opponent,” says Vijayalakshmi. She has also sung an original track.
Another mainstream musician is Kavalam Sreekumar who has sung a song, ‘Kattakadayude kathayil’ written by Murugan Kattakkada. “I have my personal political allegiance and that doesn’t come in the way of singing for a candidate. This is my profession and I don’t mind singing for any candidate, irrespective of the party,” Sreekumar says.
Bring on the music!
In demand
* ‘Premam ennal’
* ‘Enno njaanente’
* ‘Manjaadum maamalayil’
* ‘Kaikkottum kandittilla’
* ‘Saradambaram’
* ‘Scene contra’
* ‘Muthe ponne’
