Bappi Lahiri’s 'Jimmy, Jimmy' becomes new anthem for Chinese to protest COVID lockdowns
Beijing(PTI): Millions of Chinese suffering the dreaded lockdowns have turned to Hindi cinema legend Bappi Lahiri's superhit song "Jimmy Jimmy Aaja Aaja" from 1982 movie "Disco Dancer" to express their anger and frustration over the country's stringent zero-COVID policy.
In the Chinese social media networks Douyin - the Chinese name for TikTok, the song composed by Lahiri and sung by Parvati Khan is sung in Mandarin "Jie mi, jie mi", which translates into "Give me rice, give me rice", by people in the videos mockingly showing empty vessels to show how they are deprived of essential food items during the lockdowns.
The video has so far managed to escape Chinese censors that are quick to remove any post deemed critical of the country's regime.
Indian movies have always enjoyed huge popularity in China, starting from the days of cinema legend Raj Kapoor in 1950s and 60s to the recent years when films such as "3 Idiots", "Secret Superstar", "Hindi Medium", "Dangal" and "Andhadhun" performed exceptionally well at the Chinese box office.
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.
China has been bogged down with zero-COVID policy under which dozens of cities, including Shanghai which has a population over 25 million, were under lockdown for weeks with people confined to their flats.
Scores of videos have surfaced in which security officials can be seen severely cracking down on people protesting the lockdowns.
In the latest protests, workers engaged to assemble Apple Inc.'s newest iPhone staged a walkout from a factory in central China's Zhengzhou following a virus outbreak and complaints of unsafe working conditions.
Reports said workers started leaving the Foxconn factory after some of them fell ill in mid-October and received no treatment.
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.
In almost all cities, including Beijing, testing is mandatory for all residents. Without negative test results, people in the cities cannot enter public places including restaurants and markets.
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IPL first phase schedule announced amid travel concerns caused by war in West Asia
New Delhi (PTI): Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2026 opener in Bengaluru on March 28 as the BCCI announced the first phase of the tournament schedule amid concerns around players' travel arrangements due to the ongoing West Asia conflict.
All matches scheduled at the Chinnaswamy Stadium remain subject to clearance from the Karnataka government appointed expert committee, which is scheduled to meet on March 13 to assess venue preparedness in the wake of the deadly stampede at the stadium last season.
The BCCI announced the schedule of the first 20 games on Wednesday and will unveil the full schedule once the dates of elections in three states -- Tamil Nadu, Assam and West Bengal -- are announced.
Besides the state elections, the escalating conflict in West Asia will also be at the forefront of BCCI officials' minds. The war has wreaked havoc to international travel with operations of major airports like Doha and Dubai being heavily restricted.
As a result of that, some of the squad members of South Africa and West Indies are yet to reach home a week after the completion of their T20 World Cup campaign.
It remains to be seen if IPL bound players of those two nations report to their respective teams in time.
"There was a substantial delay in departure of West Indies and South Africa players. It would be a tough task to get them back to India on time. Plus the airfares have gone up substantially due to the war in West Asia," a team official told PTI.
Additionally, hotels across India are facing cooking gas shortage due to the raging conflict and on Tuesday, the central government invoked Essential Commodities Act to ensure uninterrupted supply of domestic cooking gas.
Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanthan told PTI that he is expecting his players from the West Indies and South Africa -- Akeal Hossein and Dewald Brevis, to join the team well before their IPL opener.
"We are expecting no delays from their end," he said.
The second game of the opening weekend will see Mumbai Indians host Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium and the opening weekend will not feature any double-headers.
A total of 20 matches will be played across 10 venues: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.
"During the season, Royal Challengers Bengaluru will play five home matches in Bengaluru and two in Raipur. Punjab Kings will play four home matches in New Chandigarh and three in Dharamshala, while Rajasthan Royals will play three home matches in Guwahati and four in Jaipur," said the BCCI in a statement.
"During this period (the first 16 days), the tournament will feature four double-headers, with the afternoon matches beginning at 03:30 PM IST and the evening matches commencing at 07:30 PM IST.
"Following the opening encounter on Saturday, Mumbai Indians will take on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.
"The matches scheduled in Bengaluru are subject to clearance from the Expert Committee constituted by the Government of Karnataka," the BCCI added.
