When This Sambalpuri Music Group Became ‘Instrumental’ in Rajnikanth-starrer Tamil Film

When This Sambalpuri Music Group Became ‘Instrumental’ in Rajnikanth-starrer Tamil Film

The land of ancient dance and music forms that India is, it is very natural for different music genres to coexist here. It doesn’t really come as a surprise when artists of different dialects collaborate successfully to create new music. One such collaboration which has drawn attention as well as footfall on YouTube is that between Sambalpuri ‘Singha Baja,’ popularly known as ‘Madala Baja’ group from Odisha and popular South Indian music director Anirudh Ravichander of ‘Why This Kolaveri Di’ fame. They have come together for the Tamil song ‘Marana Mass’ from the Rajnikanth-starrer film ‘Petta’ which has been composed by Anirudh.With more than 18,151,120 views on YouTube for the lyrical video of the song, these Odia rock stars have attained mass popularity and are receiving more offers from the South Indian film industries.The group calls itself ‘Maa Dhakinakali Singha Baja’ and hails from Dhenkanal. The members seek their inspiration from the Sambalpuri music form and have been playing the instruments from the past six to seven years at different functions and celebrations. The owner of the group, Madala player Ribas Naik said, “We have learnt playing these instruments from our father who was in this profession. My younger brother too plays these instruments.”Like scores of musicians these days, it was the power of YouTube which got them connected with Anirudh. Ribas had uploaded a clip of one of their outdoor performances on YouTube and had also posted his phone number. Anirudh came across the video and liked the music so much that he contacted him and offered to work with him in his upcoming film. The group began working on the video in June and uploaded it on December 3.The group consists of 20 members including Ribas and his younger brother Bikash. The other six members are Dillu Naik, Ashok Naik, Guddu Naik, Ajaya Naik and Subash Naik, all of whom were present for recording at Albuquerque Records, Chennai. Expressing his happiness over the increasing online popularity of the song, Ribas said, “When Anirudh Sir called us, I was shocked. It felt like a dream talking to him! We are quite fortunate to work with such talented people and we are quite hopeful of our future ahead.”‘Petta’ is a Tamil action film and is scheduled to release on January 11. It stars Vijay Sethupathi, Simran, Trisha, M Sasikumar, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bobby Simha, J Mahendran and Guru Somasundaram.