Yogaraj Bhat eggs you on to vote with his Election Song

The target of the Election Commission is to see 100% voting in the upcoming Karnataka elections, and to help them achieve this, they roped in filmmaker Yogaraj Bhat, who has not only penned the lyrics for the Karnataka Assembly Election 2018 Anthem, but also shot it. The song is aimed at encouraging the youth to cast their vote, and it was only fitting that Yogaraj was approached to make the video song while shooting for his youth-centric film,

Panchatantra

, was underway.

“I didn’t know much about the duties of the Election Commission earlier. After meeting its officers, I understood that they are trying to reach out to the public and that their motto is 100% voting this year. I am happy that they chose people from the film industry to help achieve this. We had a tight deadline. In 15, days, I had to write the lyrics, get the music composed, get the mixing work done, shoot the video (it has been shot in almost all the districts of Karnataka) and have it ready. Over five teams worked day and night on this,” says Yogaraj, who adds that permission to shoot in front of the Vidhana Soudha was granted for the first time in 15 years. “It was a thrilling experience to shoot there. The building itself motivates you. If the voting percentage increases this year, I would like to think that this song had a role to play in it.”

Shooting the video meant putting his film on hold. So, does this song feature in Panchatantra, considering that his lead actors, Vihan Gowda and Sonal, feature in it? “No,” says Yogaraj, adding, “This is exclusively made for the Election Commission; they have produced it.” So, what progress is being made with his film, we ask. “The film is 70% complete; one song and the climax is left to be shot. We have constructed a massive set at

Kanteerva Studio

, where 50% of the schedule was canned. The film is progressing at a tremendous pace and should release between June and August. This is one of V Harikrishna’s best albums,” says Yogaraj, signing off.

Listen to the anthem here: