Musings of a Mizo: On Vande Mataram by four-year-old Esther Hnamte and the paradoxes of being Indian

The release last week of a music video by a four-year-old girl Esther Hnamte has taken the social media world by storm. Her powerful rendition of Maa Tujhe Salaam – Vande Mataram by AR Rahman had garnered over six lakh views by early Sunday evening. Not only is her performance mesmerising but the fact is that a pint-sized child from remote Lunglei – Mizoram’s second-biggest urban hub –
is belting out an Indian patriotic song seems to have come as a pleasant surprise for many Indian netizens. Within days, Esther was featured on several regional and national media channels.

Esther is a singing sensation who usually sings kid-friendly gospel songs. She is well-trained and well-promoted by her parents and other supporters. I have seen plenty of her music videos on YouTube and appreciated her rare talent. She is by all means a music prodigy who easily learns and memorises lyrics.

As someone from the same southern town, living not so far from her locality, I am immensely proud of what this child has accomplished in her four years of earthly existence and have no doubt that she will go very far in the music industry.

With the state of Mizoram being the powerhouse of music in the North...

Read more

from Scroll.in https://ift.tt/34OMDLL
via IFTTT