To express their anger with Beijing’s harsh zero-Covid policy, millions of Chinese have turned to a well-known Indian song from the 1980s. On the short-form video platform Douyin, which is the Chinese equivalent of TikTok, users frequently use the popular Hindi song ‘Jimmy, Jimmy, Aaja Aaja’ from the 1982 film Disco Dancer to make fun of the government.
The lyrics of the Jimmy, Jimmy song, written by the late Bappi Lahiri and performed by Parvati Khan, are ‘Jie mi, jie mi,’ which translates to ‘Give me rice, give me rice,’ emphasising how they have been unable to buy even necessities during the lockdown.
Users are shown dancing and lip-syncing to the well-known Hindi song while carrying an empty vessel, donning a ‘bindi’ and a homemade saree, which are traditional Indian women’s clothing. Surprisingly, the performance has escaped the censors’ keen eyes in China, who are quick to remove anything they believe to be disparaging of Xi Jinping and his policies.
In order to combat sporadic outbreaks, the local government is employing the zero-Covid policy, which combines lockdowns, vaccinations, and contact tracing. The stringent policy has angered the populace owing to limitations on freedom of movement, food shortages, and lack of access to crucial medical services. Recently, after the authorities imposed stringent lockdown in response to an increase in Covid cases, workers at Apple’s iPhone manufacturing site in Zhengzhou city, central Henan province, were seen leaving the building en masse.
According to local accounts, the huge departure was brought on by a shortage of food supplies within the Foxconn factory. Images published on Twitter showed people strolling on the streets with baggage on their shoulders, reportedly in the absence of public transit.
Post Your Comments