Manassu Cricket Kanassu Cricket

The KPL anthem brought performers and sportsmen together, celebrating cricket as Karnataka knows it
The much-awaited KPL anthem has finally been shot and will likely be aired on TV channels from the first week of September.

The project brought together actors, composers, directors and cricketers who decided to represent their state for free.

Alok Shetty, an ad film director, shot the video for the song over three days and covered the topography of the city to find the proper shooting locales. "It was fun to watch film stars and cricketers supporting each other while we shot," said Shetty. "While actors taught the cricketers the tricks of facing the camera, our cricketers gave them enough tips about the sport," he added.

More than 20 actors including Shiva Rajkumar, Puneeth Rajkumar, Sudeep, Ramesh Aravind, Sharmila Mandre, Aindrita Ray, and Bhavana, were a part of the video. Sunil Joshi, Manish Pande, and Stuart Binny were among the cricketers who represented the state. "This for no payment and purely for goodwill," said Om Pradutt, event organiser.

The video was shot aiming to introduce the different regions represented by the teams. Cultural heritage and atypical geographies were kept in mind.

"We did it basically to encourage the players and it was a great experience. I enjoyed acting for the video and the song was really catchy," said Sharmila Mandre.

The song was composed by Ricky Kej, famous ad film music director who also gave Kannada audiences a musical hit in Accident, last year.

"The song is extremely peppy and celebrates the spirit of cricket. I have taken a lot of concern to blend in the flavours of Kannada music, so that the song sounds authentic. We've used Yakshagana and Dollu Kunitha traditions and I'm sure you'll agree that it spiced up the song," Ricky said. The song was composed within just 15 days.u00a0

The song is extremely peppy and celebrates the spirit of cricket
Ricky Kej, music director

The Anthem
LYRICS: Namma Manassu cricket, Namma Kanassu cricket, Endendu
Namma dharmanu00c3u00a9 cricket, Namma karmanu00c3u00a9 cricket, Endendu

Composed by cricket buff and Kannada film lyricist Kaviraja, this has always been a dream for him.

"I have always been a fan of cricket and the fact that a song for the celebration of cricket in Karnataka was written by me, is something that will always give me a lot of joy," Kaviraja said.