Flurry of musical creativity ahead of Ayodhya’s Pran Pratishtha ceremony

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It’s something of the level we do not get to see even on annual festive occasions. Composers, lyricists and singers, especially those whose greatest fame has come from film music, are individually demonstrating their creativity with music videos ahead of the inauguration of Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir and the Pran Pratishtha ceremony.

Each song has a video and in today’s age of non-physical formats, these devotionals can be watched online.

Padma Shri Kailash Kher has released five separate tracks on his KEPL / Kailasa Records online label. The soulful Ram ka dham anthem is a rousing eight-minute song composed by veteran Anu Malik, arranged by Aman Pant, and written by Milind Panwar. A distinguished product, the video details the background of the struggle for the Ram Mandir, which dates back over 500 years and more.

The lyrics include poignant lines like Ram Rajya ki pehli seedhi aaj yeh Hindustan chadhaa (India has taken its first step towards Ram Rajya, the ideal rule) and Tretayug ke raja ko kalyug mein kya pravaas mila / Janam liya jis bhoomi par uss bhumi ko vanwaas mila (What a journey Lord Ram, the ruler of Treta-Yug—the second and second best of the four yug or world ages in a Yug Cycle—had to himself, for his birthplace itself also faced exile!). The evocative lyrics also state: Hriday mein sabke vaas kare / Par swayam ka koi sthan nahin tha (Lord Ram, who resides in every heart, had no home of his own).

“In creating the Ram ka dham anthem, I have poured my heart and soul into every note, aiming to capture the divine essence of the Ram Mandir. This musical journey, in collaboration with talented artistes, is my humble tribute to the spiritual legacy of Ayodhya Dham,” said Kailash Kher, who has also written, composed and rendered He utar rahi hai utar rahi mere Ram ki sawaari hai among others.

Padma Bhushan Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik have collaborated on Hum sab hain Shree Ram prabhu ke / Hum sabke hain Ram / Jai Shree Ram, a moving song written by Sameer Anjaan and composed by Shamir Tandon. The video again celebrates the festive mood.

Another video, Bajaao dhol swagat mein / Awadh mein Ram aaye hain (Welcome Lord Ram to Awadh with drums) is sung and enacted by Shaan and Devi Chitralekha with lyrics by Harshit Vishwakarma. The music is by Shriyansh Pratap Singh.

Legendary filmmaker Subhash Ghai has also written and composed the track, Ram morey, sung by Madhushree.

Madhushree and Utkarsh Sharma have also collaborated on the intense melody, Avadhpuri mein mangal baaje / Ram aaye hain, written by Mrityunjay Kumar and composed by Satish Tripathi. The video again is standout and so are the lyrics, like the line, Sadiyon tak sunghursh hua tab khatam hua vanwaas / Apne ghar mein pahunche Raghuvar dhwaj lehraye hain (After centuries of a struggle, the exile is over, and the flags are proudly flying as Lord Ram has reached home).

Another outstanding video and song is Hriday mein Shri Ram hain. National award-winning composer Saleel Kulkarni has collaborated with Padma Shri Suresh Wadkar and Aarya Ambekar for this soulful melody written by Sandeep Khare that is out on II Music. Saleel said, “As Ram-ji comes home in Ayodhya, an emotion deep inside pushed me to make this bhajan, which is for each and every disciple of Lord Ram who lives the way our beloved Maryada Purshottam did. The magic of seasoned artistes makes this tune even more special, and I hope all Ram bhakts listen to this as they make their way to Ayodhya.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who features in many of the videos, has himself praised Saleel’s song on his Twitter handle.

Ramji aaye is an imaginative rendition by the distinctively-voiced Sakshi Holkar. Conceived and composed by Siddharth Kasyap, it is written by Shakeel Azmi, the popular lyricist of many a film album (Madhoshi, Zeher) and a Muslim poet who has written poems inspired by Ramayan. As one of his followers has commented on the video, he has flown the banner of true religious unity high.

Current market forces, singer-composer Vishal Mishra and lyricist Manoj Muntashir, have done the T-Series video, Ram lalla mere Ram lalla har din tera hi nazaara hain. This video even has a storyboard with noted character artiste, Bharati Achrekar, playing the central role of a woman who has fasted so that the temple will be built on the site of the Ram Janmabhoomi.

Jai Shri Ram is also the name of the YouTube channel that is currently streaming devotional content in the forms of Bhakti Geets, Bhajans, Jaaps, Mantras, Dohas and Stutis dedicated to Lord Ram. All of them are sung by renowned singers like Anup Jalota, Tripti Shakya and Vivek Prakash, who will be performing their songs from the album live at the Shri Ram Temple on January 22 as a part of the celebrations.

There is a special section exclusively dedicated to songs and other devotional content around the inauguration of Shri Ram Mandir and the installation of the Ram Lalla idol in it. There will be a constant addition of new content every day for the next six months in the channel. One of the key highlights of the channel is the new version of Ramcharitramanas in the Awadhi language, sung by Kamlesh Upadhyay Haripuri and composed by Kritika Soni.

Retaining the original essence of Sant Tulisdas, this version is a new rendition narrated in contemporary style to resonate with viewers of all age groups. It is spread across more than 300 episodes of 12 minutes each, which will give an audiovisual narration on Lord Ram’s life, which viewers can see in parts as per their convenience and schedule

Added attractions include the Shri Ram Jaap and Tulsi ki Ramayan bole sung by Anup Jalota, which reinforces how Lord Rama was an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. It appeals viewers to imbibe Lord Ram’s personality, beliefs and value system in their daily life.

A topical Shri Ram bal roop mein aaye hain is a melodious music video exclusively dedicated around the celebration of the historic occasion of the commencement of Ram Mandir. It evokes the listener to be a part of that journey which is a symbol of cultural and spiritual unity. It is sung by Ashish Pandey and composed by Sonu Sagar.

Avadh kare abhinandan is a bhajan by Tripti Shakya that earnestly asks the viewers to experience the Mahima (greatness) of Lord Ram and surrender their soul to the great lord. Sonu Sagar has tuned lyrics by Kuldeep Pandey.

There are also various Shri Ram Stutis sung by many singers. All these are by Sant Tulisdas from his work, Vinaya Patrika, in Sanskrit and Awadhi from the 16^th century. Another forthcoming attraction is Shri Ram ki madhushala by Vivek Prakash. In this, the poet prays to Lord Ram and Lord Hanuman on how they are the mightiest in this world. His constant plea to them is to churn the Amrut jam continuously for bettering the lives of their devotees.

Sushilkumar Agrawal, CEO, Ultra Media & Entertainment Group, said, “We are extremely happy to dedicate a complete channel to Shri Ram and the Ayodhya Temple. It is a form of a small seva from our side in joining the entire country in their fervor to celebrate the life of Lord Ram. It will be an ongoing effort in terms of content curating and addition from our side to make the Jai Shri Ram channel a part of everyone’s daily life. Finally, we are quite elated that we were ready and were able to release it just days before the grand temple launch.”