VIRAL VIDEO: Mumbai's Gully Gang raps on COVID19 in TAMIL and other Languages!

A trilingual rap song called “Stay Home, Stay Safe” was released two days after Mumbai’s Dharavi reported a sharp single-day hike in number of COVID19 cases. This song was an effort taken by the ‘Gully Gang’ team to urge people to stay indoors. This rap song made by various bands from Dharavi, features famous actors like Akshay Kumar and Rana Daggubati. 

It urges people to stay indoors, practice social distancing, wear masks and maintain hygiene to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. The lyrics of the song is set in Tamil, Marathi and Hindi because a huge section of the populace in Dharavi belong to these linguistic groups.

The Tamil section of the song has the following lines that have been used to depict the situation- Mella Mella ella idathilum idhu nulaitathu. Indru Dharaviyum andha varisayil thavikidu (which translates to – the virus is affecting every place and slowly Dharavi is also suffering).

The rap was directed by Joel D’Souza. It was written, composed and performed by MC Altaf Shaiik who is a member of hip hop crew Gully Gang. Sebastian (Dopedelicz) and Bonz N Ribz (7 Bantaiz) also wrote, composed and performed the song. 

The song was released on all video and audio streaming apps such as Spotify, iTunes and Youtube on Tuesday. 

So far, Mumbai has reported around 10,000 cases. With 600 of the cases emerging from Dharavi, the place has been deemed as a key hotspot in the city. 

“The area in the heart of the city, estimated to have more than 57,000 shanties, huts and small flats, many of them illegal, has become a public health emergency. Aware of the squalid conditions that the residents live in, the artists have urged the residents to avoid public spitting, consult doctors and take necessary precautions,” Times of India cites in its report.