Lipakshi Seedhar (Staff Reporter) :
Coronavirus has affected 23, 502 people in India till now, out of which 5,012 have recovered and 722 have lost their lives. COVID-19 has brought the world to a halt and India is no different. The markets, cinema halls, schools, universities, offices, etc., are all closed. Most people are at home because going out means getting infected. The things which were considered very normal and sometimes monotonous are now what we long for. Things like going to school, going for work, going out to play, going for a dinner with friends, going to the gym and whatnot. Coronavirus has also affected celebrities alike. All the sports tournaments have been canceled or postponed until further notice. The shoots for movies, daily soaps, reality shows have also been canceled for now. This means no new episodes of your favorite shows and no new movies for a long time.
This time is tough with all the negativity surrounding us. The news is covered with
cases of people getting affected or dying because of the virus. The situation is very
depressing. During these times the people need continuous motivation especially the
doctors, paramedics staff, police and other people working day night to eradicate the
virus. The Government is trying hard to do so and the people of India are supporting
the Government.
On 22nd March, the country came together to appreciate the real heroes by clapping and banging plates. On 5th April, people lighted diyas, candles in their balconies are sang songs as a token of appreciation.
As influencers, celebrities, bloggers, vloggers, from all walks of life are coming together
to spread the message of “Stay Home, Stay Safe”. These celebrities are also donating
money to the PM Care Fund. At the same time, they are trying to entertain the people
of the country and spreading positivity.
The Indian Singer’s Rights Association (ISRA) organized virtual concert “Sangeet Setu”
which aired on social media as well as on television on April 10, 11 and 12. The concert had an artiste line-up that included Asha Bhonsle, SP Balasubramaniam, KJ Yesudas, Udit Narayan, Anoop Jalota, Pankaj Udhas, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Sudesh Bhosale, Talat Aziz, Alka Yagnik, Kumar Shanu Hariharan, Shankar Mahadevan, Sonu
Nigam, Salim Merchant, Shaan and Kailash Kher.
The actors from Bollywood as well as regional cinemas came together to create
#Family- A made at the home short film. This film featured Amitabh Bachchan, Rajnikanth,
Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Alia Bhatt, Chiranjeevi, Mohanlal, Mammootty,
Sonalee Kulkarni, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Shiva Rajkumar, Diljit Dosanjh virtually directed
by Prasoon Pandey. All the people in the film shot their parts from their homes.
The film was shot in different locations of the world yet nobody stepped out of their houses. This 4 min film brought a smile to the faces of the people.Just Music, in an attempt to appreciate the togetherness of the country during these hard times as well as appreciating the doctors, police for risking their lives released a multi- starrer music video titled “Muskurayega India”. The music video stars Akshay Kumar, Jackky Bhagnani, Kartik Aryan, Tiger Shroff, Ayushmann Khurrana, Kriti Sanon, Bhumi Pednekar, Raj Kumar, Rao, Vishal Kaushal, Kiara Advani, Tapsee Pannu, Sidharth Malhotra, Rakul Preet Singh, Ananya Pandey, RJ Malishka and Shikhar Dhawan.
The music is sung by Vishal Mishra and everyone became a part of it from their homes.This video gives hope to the people that things will be alright if the country remains together at home.Akshay Kumar in collaboration with B Praak released his already hit song “Teri Mitti” with a change of lyrics. The song this time appreciated the real heroes. The song shows how they forgot their homes to save ours, how they left their kids to save ours, how they put their lives in danger to save our lives.
These lyrics from the song make each listener have goosebumps and respect these heroes: “Nanhi si hasi, bholi si khushi, phoolon si wo baahein bhool gaye Jab desh ne di aawaz humein hum ghar ki raahein bhool gaye Hum soye nahin kayi raaton se ae jaane watan sau chaand bujhe Humein neend ussi din aayegi jab dekhenge aabaad tujhe …”, Majboor hui jab dil ki duaa to humne dawaa se kaam liya Wo nabz nahin phir thamne di, jis nabz ko humne thaam liya Beemar hai jo kis dharm ka hai..humse na kabhi ye bhed hua… Sarhad pe jo wardi khaki thee, ab uska rang safed hua.” These lyrics surely make us appreciate the easy days we are spending at home while these heroes spend sleepless nights.
Bollywood’s Bhaijaan too released a music video titled “Pyaar Karona” in which he urges people to show love towards others, to be more kind, to be helpful to others and not to fight on the basis of religion. In the black and white music video, Salman Khan advises people to stay at home, work from home, be creative while at home, have patience as well as encourage people to consider each other and take care of each other, also giving a shout out to those working tirelessly in the fight against the pandemic, and how the virus doesn’t discriminate between rich and poor.
The music is minimal and the song is almost like the actor is having a conversation with the public. The Punjabi film and music industry also released a music video titled “Jitange Hosle Naal”. The video stars Priti Sapru, Nirmal Rishi, Neeru Bajwa, Sargun Mehta, Simmi Chahal, Aditi Sharma, Rubina Bajwa, Japji Khaira, Harshjot Kaur, Afsana Khan, Rza Heer, Sabrina Bajwa and Aanaya Jawandha. The song is sung by Afsana Khan and Rza Heer and it asks people to have the courage and that we’ll win this fight for sure.
Rapper Emiway Bantai also recorded the song “Khatam Karona” in which he mentions how we have damaged the Earth and by staying at home, we can give it time to replenish itself. The rap song is an attempt to reach more people as the youth does listen to influencers and follows what these influencers do. This song is based not on corona but also on different crimes happening in the country like rapes, killings, etc. The singer also encourages his listeners to sit at home and eradicate the virus as well as be more careful about the damages we do to Earth because there is no second earth.
Global Citizen and Lady Gaga have organized a virtual concert series titled “One World: Together at Home”. in support of the World Health Organization. The special is meant to promote the practice of social distancing during the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic. It featured more than 100 celebrities from all over the world who came together to appreciate the medical staff. The eight-hour show also featured real-life stories from those on the front line of the fight against Covid-19. The event raised almost $128m (£102m), with proceeds going towards vaccine development and local and regional charities, organizers Global Citizen said.
The line- up also featured Indian celebrities Vishal Mishra, Lisa Mishra, Shahrukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Some of the international singers that took part in the concert were Rita Ora, Liam Payne, Charlie Puth, Elie Goulding, John Legend, The Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift and many more. The concert also featured David Beckham (Footballer), Lewis Hamilton (Formula One racing driver), Lilly Singh (You Tuber and television host), Erna Solberg (Prime Minister of Norway), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Governor of Lagos State), Claudia Sheinbaum (Mayor of Mexico City), Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London), Bill de Blasio (Mayor of New York City), Greg Fischer (Mayor of Louisville), P. K. Subban (Ice hockey player), Megan Rapinoe (Footballer), T. D. Jakes (Bishop and writer), Azza Karam (Secretary-General of Religions for Peace), Chidanand Saraswati (Religious leader), Satpal Singh (Wrestler and coach), A. R. Bernard (Pastor), Mike Bloomberg (Businessman and philanthropist), Darren Walker (President of Ford Foundation), Victoria Beckham (Fashion designer and singer), Hoda Kotb (Host of Today), Tedros Adhanom (Director-General of the World Health Organization), António Guterres (Secretary-General of the United Nations), Laura Bush (Former First Lady of the United States), Michelle Obama (Former First Lady of the United States), Lester Holt (Host of NBC Nightly News and Dateline NBC), Melinda Gates and Bill Gates (Philanthropists and former general of Microsoft), David Ho (Doctor), Oprah Winfrey (TV host) and Amina J. Mohammed (Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations).
We should not forget to appreciate the teachers who are going the extra mile in
understanding the new technologies and teaching children, preparing assignments,
checking them, taking tests, and at the same time looking after their homes. It is
because of these educators, who thought the now doctors, politicians, police, etc and
made them capable to find the vaccine or to make rules or work as police, that today
we can say that the world is in great hands.
At the same time, we should also appreciate the online influencers, especially
YouTubers, who are creating more content to entertain their followers and bring a smile to people’s faces. These influencers are trying hard to spread positivity through their content.
Let us appreciate the Indian Government too, as it is because of them that we have been able to control the spread, unlike Italy, Spain, or the USA. The Prime Minister who is appreciating everyone be it the cleaners, doctors, police, the people distributing food, etc. The positivity that the Government is trying to maintain during the pandemic is quite appreciable.
Let us appreciate the internet because it helped us in staying entertained.Let us appreciate ourselves, for we, have stayed at home, for we helped the needy, we controlled our desires of eating lavish, for we donated, for we broke the chain.
The times are still hard, but if we follow the rules of the lockdown, the good days are
not far away. In no time, we’ll be enjoying our normal days and appreciating them more. But, till then let’s stay at home and save the world.