This Bappi Lahiri song from Disco Dancer is the new anthem for Covid-19 lockdown protests in China. Read to know why

The Covid-19 lockdowns have returned to China. As millions of Chinese citizens are protesting the government’s decisions to enforce lockdowns in various parts of the country, one Hindi song from four decades ago is emerging as the new protest anthem. Late composer Bappi Lahiri’s song Jimmy Jimmy, Aaja Aaja from the 1982 film Disco Dancer is being used as a medium by protesters o express their anger and frustration over the country’s stringent zero-Covid policy. Also read: Mithun dances to Bappi’s I Am A Disco Dancer with sons Mimoh, Namashi

The reason for this popularity is because Jimmy Jimmy sounds very close to the Mandarin phrase Jie mi, which loosely translates to ‘Give me rice’. As per a PTI report, many social media users on Douyin – the Chinese name for TikTok, are using the song while mockingly showing empty vessels to show how they are deprived of essential food items during the lockdowns.

The song, composed by Bappi Lahiri and sung by Parvati Khan and Vijay Benedict, was picturised on Mithun Chakraborty and Kim in the 1982 blockbuster Disco Dancer. At the time of its release, the film and the song were quite popular in another Communist regime- the erstwhile Soviet Union.

The video has so far managed to escape Chinese censors that are quick to remove any post deemed critical of the country’s regime. Observers say Chinese have found a smart way of using “Jie mi, jie mi” to make soft protests in their bid to highlight the public plight over the zero-COVID policy, which has literally cut-off China from the outside world.

On Sunday, China reported 2,675 cases, up from 802 from the previous day. Under the zero-Covid policy mandated by President Xi Jinping, the cities and localities have to undergo strict lockdowns and people of the area are shifted to quarantine centres if any positive cases are reported.

(With PTI inputs)