In 1998, Bhangra music was becoming mainstream. It was the pre-item-number era, and the catchy song that would get people excited about a movie was no longer a romantic melody. It was often a Bhangra song, with Punjabi interspersed with Hindi for increased popularity. Many such numbers featured the main singer (typically male) and a bunch of hot pants/ denim or leather shorts clad girls dancing. Or in case of one of the singers, girls wearing loose flowing salwar/pants and tight bright colored tunics.In 1998, there was a new Bhangra song on the scene. It featured just the singer, no one else. No dancing babes in this one. Just the singer. Or rather, four copies of the same guy, in bright colors, flowing robes and a turban. The Bling.
The song was a hit. A super hit. It solidified Daler Mehendi to the numero uno of Bhangra. A cheesy video made by green screening the same guy in front of low quality graphic backdrops shot in relatively low resolution. Through video effects, Daler Mehendi was superimposed onto virtual backgrounds, place them over animated digital backdrops or transport them to a desert oasis or polar icelakes.
Tunak Tunak Tun signaled it was the sheer energy and tremendous vocal capacity of Daler Mehendi and the catchiness inherent in Bhangra-pop that made his songs a hit, not some babes in the background.
The video features Daler Mehendi, flowing robes of orange with black, crimson with white, black with gold and green with black. Each color represented one of the 'earth element' - orange represents fire, green represents ice and water, black represents machinery and crimson represents food.
Any resemblance to Power Rangers is entirely coincidental.
The song itself is a poem sung to a sweetheart, imploring her to tell him what's going on her mind. He claims she is the moon and he himself to be a chakor, a mythological bird that's in love with the moon. The world is neither good or bad - rather than view it in those black and white terms, realize that the world is a colorful place.
Watch the original song on youtube or listen to it on soundcloud
Here's a parody made by using World of Warcraft character named Dranei
