Even though the song composed by AR Rahman for the Games has faced widespread criticism, his other more celebrated songs may just end up saving the day.
Jai Ho and Maa Tujhe Salaam, both critically-acclaimed songs by the maestro, will be played at the inauguration ceremony of the Games on October 3. Rahman will also sing Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite hymn, Vaishnava Jan To for the 60,000-strong audience expected to attend the ceremony.
Sources said the video of the theme song, Yaro India Bula Liya, to be played at the ceremony, will feature celebrities like Saina Nehwal, Milkha Singh and Samresh Jung, among other famous sports personalities. Interestingly, a troupe of 1,500 artistes will make a human train as part of a 12-minute ‘Great Indian Train Journey’ dance sequence — showcasing rural and small town India — even as Rahman’s popular song Chaiyya Chaiyya plays in the background.
The performance by Rahman will be part of a 45-minute cultural show that has been chalked out by a team comprising Shyam Benegal, Prasoon Joshi, Javed Akhtar and Bharat Bala. It also includes ‘Rhythm of India’ involving 900 drummers, followed by the Swagatam song by Hariharan. The team has been working on the show for the last 14 months.
The opening and closing ceremonies for the Games, involving about 10,000 artistes, are estimated to cost about Rs 300 crore. An Indian martial arts show and Rahman’s composition Vande Mataram will feature among the main attractions during the concluding ceremony.
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