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Tunak Tunak Tun (Mid 2000s) (www.youtube.com)

submitted 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

14 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Daler Mehndi's 1998 music video, in which the singer performs with 4 "clones" of himself. "Mehndi claims his music was often criticized for only being popular due to the abundance of beautiful, dancing women in his videos The singer responded by creating a video that featured nobody but himself." Apparently he wasn't wrong and the song went on to become the "biggest indi-pop hit at the time".

The video caught the attention of the wider internet around 2006. The catchy song, dated visual effects, and absurdity of the "clones" fueled its spread.

On a less fun note: in 2018 the singer and his brother Shamsar were convicted of human trafficking, accused of "cheating people of large sums of money by falsely promising to take them to America" and "illegally sending people abroad as a part of their dance troupes."

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I really shouldn't have read that last paragraph, I was enjoying that weird man.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago (1 children)

I believe in the death of the author. This helps me separate the art and the artist.

Bad people do good things and not everyone can be judged by their worst acts.

I wouldn't pay for any of his art anymore, but I still enjoy the songs I have already without guilt.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Death of the author works best when the author is actually dead. It's easier to accept that H. P. Lovecraft or Phil Spector had some pretty terrible moral failings since you know that you're in no way supporting ongoing bad acts.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago

you are also not supporting the author if you pirate their works :)

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

Yo same. Dunno how to enjoy the song now

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago

Ah the male Draenei dance!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago

When everybody picks the same character in super smash bros

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago (1 children)

They remastered the video a few years back

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=viMEhOWcxd0

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Did they remaster the human trafficking!? That seems like the bigger story...

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago

I can't quite tell what that means from the wiki article-- sounds like he may have been getting people into the US bc they couldn't get visas to go. I have a much different reaction to that than I would if the trafficking involved the other reasons people usually traffick.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

If the song slaps, the song slaps. Not removing it from the rotation.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

About ten years ago now, a new sports bar/grill opened in my neighborhood, and they had tons of brand new smart TVs all on the same unsecured wifi network. Tunak Tunak Tun was the first classic Internet video we played for the people there that evening.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

What is this song actually singing about?

Edit: I answered my own question:

https://lyricstranslate.com/en/tunak-tunak-tun-tunak-tunak-tun.html-0

[–] [email protected] -1 points 8 months ago

This sucks