BHOPAL: The assembly polls-bound Madhya Pradesh is currently witnessing an interesting battle of songs between two women poet-singers — the Bihar-based Neha Singh Rathore and Bundelkhand (UP)-based Anamika Jain Amber. The battle between the two young women poet-singers isn’t new but goes back to the 2021-22 assembly poll season of adjoining Uttar Pradesh.
Just a few months before the assembly polls in BJP-ruled UP in the spring of 2022, Neha Singh Rathore came out with a popular Bhojpuri composition, “UP mein ka ba,” which targeted the Yogi Adityanath-led state government on a host of issues. Just a few weeks later, the Lalitpur-UP born Anamika responded to Neha’s number with her Bundeli composition, “UP mein baba hain-UP mein baba,” which narrated the achievements of the BJP government in the politically crucial north Indian state.
While the BJP retained power with an impressive majority in UP in March 2022, the Bihar-based Bhojpuri singer received a notice under Section 160 CrPc from Kanpur police in UP around 11 months later, over multiple complaints about Rathore allegedly inciting hatred. Five months later, another BJP-ruled state Madhya Pradesh, is proving to be an ideal ground for revival of the battle of songs between the two young women poets-singers, ahead of the year-end assembly polls.
Neha who was recently booked by the Bhopal police on a ruling BJP leader’s complaint over her social media post, allegedly linking RSS with the shocking urination on a tribal man episode in MP, recently released on the social media a composition, “MP mein ka ba” on the lines of her highly popular ‘UP Mein ka ba’ song.Meanwhile, Anamika’s responded to Rathore through the composition, ‘Mama Magic karat hain-Modi magic karat Hain.” The song is a reply to those who have started questioning MP.
