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The New Indian Express News

Kerala / The New Indian Express

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How an Ayyappa parody song boosted the UDF campaign

KOCHI: As the Congress-led UDF swept to a resounding victory in the local body elections, a three-and-a-half-minute election parody emerged as an unlikely yet influential force, complementing a host of other factors that shaped the outcome. The parody song Swarnam kattavar aarappa sakhakkal aane Ayyappa -- set to the familiar tune of an Ayyappa devotional song and alleging that the comrades looted Lord Ayyappas gold -- struck a deep chord with voters and conveyed UDFs political message effectively. It was a parody song that played continuously from dawn to dusk on the campaign vehicles of UDF candidates. After hearing it so often, we sometimes even began to doubt the original lyrics of the devotional song, said a resident of HMT Colony in Kalamassery. Although I support Left politics, I too enjoyed the song because of its quality, composition, and lyrics, he added. Haneefa Mudikkode, the music composer of the parody, said the lyrics were written by his poet-lyricist friend G P Kunhabdulla Chalappuram, a Nadapuram native now based in Qatar. When Chalappuram approached me with the lyrics, I recorded the song with independent singer Danish Padinjattumuri, with the chorus sung by my son, Irfan, Haneefa told TNIE. He said they were initially apprehensive of peoples response because of concerns over the sensitivity of the theme. Subair Panthallur, owner of CMS Media, supported the project and released it on their social media platforms after producing a video using the same track they had recorded, Haneefa said. Explaining how the song came to be, Chalappuram said he has long been observing contemporary politics and social events, which led him to write articles, poems, and lyrics. Having composed lyrics for over 600 songs over the past 35 years, he said the song was born out of his deep anguish over the alleged gold theft at the Sabarimala temple and the emotions surrounding it among devotees. I was in Kerala during the recording and release of the song, but realised how big a trend it had become only after returning to Qatar. Im at a loss for words to describe the response from the audience, Chalappuram said. He added that while he is a supporter of Congress politics, he does not hesitate to criticise the party whenever necessary. Meanwhile, political analyst M R Ajayan said that despite the social media-driven electoral trend, several other factors such as the Sabarimala gold theft issue, PM Shri scheme, and Vellappallys Malappuram remark clearly shaped the outcome, as reflected in the results. Behind the scenes Lyrics: G P Chalappuram Composer: Haneefa Mudikkode Singers : Danish Padinjattumuri Chorus: Irfan Mudikkode Video posted on social media account Irfans Ad Story Views: Approximately 2 million Likes: 1.67 lakh Shares: 1.26 lakh Reposts: 1,800 Saved by: 12,000

15 Dec 2025 8:19 am