Bappi Lahiri lived to see almost all of his songs being remixed or mashed up. But Chinese reinterpreting Jimmy Jimmy to make it their lockdown anthem is something India's disco king couldn't have imagined himself.
For millions of Chinese, placed under lockdown in the recent days, the song Jimmy Jimmy has become both a comfort song and one that reflects on their state of affairs.
The lyrics 'Jie Mi, Jie Mi' when literally spoken in Mandarin mean 'Give me Rice, Give me rice.' Hence the cathartic value associated with the song because they reflect the population's growing frustration over the government's harsh Covid lockdowns, which is depriving them of food essentials.
In the video gone viral, Chinese can be seen dressed in sarees or Indian kurtas and lip synching to the song, while holding up their empty pots and pans towards the camera.
The Indian song from the 1980's hit film Disco Dancer is not the only form of soft protest adopted by the Chinese as many of them are also calling for removal of the President Xi Jinping on social media. The videos which have now spread on several social media platforms, were originally posted on Chinese platform named Douyin.
Bappi Lahiri is still so relevant, remarked many an amused netizens from India. "From Russia to China, Bappi da rocks," wrote a user. "China ch jimmy jimmy kiti payi a," laughed a Punjabi netizen, while applauding the genuity of the idea. Like we said, who would've thought.
