A little over a week ago, I referenced a song I heard had a music video with an interesting backstory. Can you guys help me find out if the truth behind the video’s original is true or false?
“Tunak Tunak Tun” by Daler Mehndi is a very old song (I mean, really old) that I heard is still being played in many South Asian, social events. Its music video (shown at the end of this post) comes with a story that goes a little like this. Some critics (not entirely sure whether they were people in the music industry, or your average music listeners) believed Mr. Mehndi’s success was only due to his heavy use of beautiful women in his music videos. Somehow, the word reached Mehndi, and he decided to prove the critics wrong. So, he launched a music video, entirely devoid of women, where he danced for his viewers while singing in front of a…I guess, typical green screen, backdrop at the time. The song was massively successful, and Daler Mehndi proved himself right. More importantly, he proved the critics WRONG.
I don’t know how legitimate this rumor is. Someone told me this story, a couple of months ago. Since then, I’ve tried to find some reliable sources to back it up (reliable sources are hard to come by these days, especially for something that happened so long ago). So far, I’ve found none. I did find another blog post that discusses the rumor. However, it does not refer to valid sources that support whether it is true or not. Which is why I need your help. I’ve always had a fascination for stories where individuals challenge the industry standard. You should get a sense of that from reading some of my previous blog posts. The overuse of attractive women in music videos, for the sake of appealing to a predominately male viewing population, is one of those practices that I wish the music industry promoted less.
I get the argument. Sex sells. However, it should not drive the success of a music video or the song it is based on. The artistic limitations of the producer/director/artist should be the sole indication of musical success. Otherwise, one can hardly admit their song is popular because of what it says. Thus, we’d have another ‘Mehndi Mystery’ on our hands. In other words, can we say a song is popular because of its lyrics, or is it popular because of the sex factor peddled in its music video? To the Mystery Mobile!
I’ll likely revisit this issue in more depth sometime soon. For now, I’ll be happy to put this rumor to rest. It is always gratifying to know there is someone willing to challenge the norms, just to prove that we are not as limited as we think we are. Given my surprisingly short memory span, it helps to be reminded, every, so often, that I don’t have to judge my successes in this world by how much I conform to perceived limitations. The world is only a small chasm of a much larger whole. I just have to reach a little further to grasp it.
Daler Mehndi - Tunak Tunak Tun Video
Special thanks to team at Wirally for providing the article. If you have a coffee break to spare, I’d recommend reading it. In addition, special thanks to SonyMusicIndiaVEVO for posting this timeless classic. Feel free to comment and like the video by clicking it or following the link here. If you enjoyed the post, or just have something to say, please leave a comment below. As always, until next time…
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