As Nagpur's election day approaches, the city's campaign trail is pulsating to a new rhythm. Political candidates are increasingly turning to the power of music, tapping into popular Bollywood hits and viral social media tracks to capture voter attention, particularly among the youth.
From Social Media Reels to Street Campaigns
The strategy is visible across platforms. On social media, reels featuring high-energy tracks such as Dhurandhar, Fa9sla, and Aarambh are being used as background scores for political clips. Even powerful spoken-word pieces like the Sanskrit Shiv Tandav stotra are gaining traction. This digital trend has seamlessly moved onto the physical streets, blurring the lines between online outreach and traditional campaigning.
Campaign workers confirm the shift is deliberate. Music that already enjoys wide circulation online creates instant recognition on the ground. In the cluttered final days before polling, filled with posters and speeches, a familiar tune helps candidates cut through the noise.
The Psychology Behind the Playlist
Psychologist Riddhi Nakum explains the science behind the strategy. "Music in rallies functions as a powerful psychological and neurological stimulus," she says. The rhythm and melody activate the brain's reward system, releasing dopamine. This generates emotional arousal, curiosity, and pleasure, drawing people toward the source of the sound.
This theory is being put into practice on Nagpur's roads. Auto-rickshaws fitted with loudspeakers have become a key vehicle for this sonic campaign. As they navigate narrow lanes and crowded chowks, the music acts as an advance announcement. Congress candidate from ward 37, Prashant Kapse, notes, "When a familiar tune plays, people step out instinctively. It's a simple marketing tool... it helps us reach a much wider audience."
Remixing Cinema for Political Messaging
Parallel to viral social media sounds, well-known film tunes from Bollywood, South Indian, and Marathi cinema are being repurposed. Recognisable compositions like the Bahubali and Kantara themes are being retained, but their lyrics are reworked to suit local narratives of development and accessibility.
New versions with political lyrics, such as ‘Rashtravadi Punha' and ‘Aamcha Neta Lai Powerful', are echoing through neighbourhoods. Political observers say that in a crowded electoral field with dozens of candidates, originality lies not in creating something new, but in reframing the familiar. A popular film tune, stripped of its cinematic context and loaded with local references, becomes an easy-to-digest political message.
Nagpur's campaign soundtrack is thus a layered mix—part social media virality, part cinematic memory, and part street-level politics. While the platforms and lyrics may differ, the core strategy remains consistent: in a contest where voter attention is the most valuable currency, familiar sound has emerged as a potent tool of persuasion.
