CHENNAI: Large lights beaded together and transformed into 20x20 ft cutouts of Dr BR Ambedkar, CN Annadurai, or J Jayalalithaa. These structures light up pockest of the city like Parry’s Corner, Chepauk and Perambur as the campaign season begins for the Lok Sabha Assembly polls. No roadshow or rally is complete without entry songs, music performances, red carpets, and speeches. Borrowing from cinema, which has long been an inseparable part of Tamil Nadu politics, background music and decorative lights are crucial.
While hawkers sell their wares, juices and rows of flags crowd streets, in the corner of campaigns, sound and light engineers are hidden in plain sight and orchestrate entries and exits of candidates, with a generous dose of party anthems. “If an actor acts well, then a film becomes a hit. That talent is there, but we need to use the music correctly. Then, everyone is a star. In 2014, I thought that we should do songs during entry and exit, and it’ll be an attraction,” says Sridhar of Janani Lights and Sound. Over the past 20-odd years, his company has arranged the backdrop for campaigns, festivals, and birthdays and created light structures that are unmissable part of functions.
“I have planned the entries of many heads of parties into campaigns — including Seeman, Vijaykanth, Sarathkumar, Thirumavalavan. Now, they have become popular but I have seen them in times when they arrived on the scene on bikes,” says Gunalan who has been working in this field for over 30 years. The engineer adds that Chepauk and the Memorial Hall were often chosen for rallies. Having seen seven elections, he cannot recall the number of campaigns he has planned sound for but says that this work is challenging. They also arrange lights for religious or family functions. For the Pongal function, Sridhar crafts designs of cows, sugarcane and lines wishing ‘happy Pongal’.
Setting the scene
Before a campaign, an area is scouted, the crowd is assessed and the ideology brushed up on. “After we see an area, we decide how we can fix it; as party people have white shirts, the stage must have warm lights,” Sridhar says, adding that based on crowd and activity, songs are chosen. “They won’t tell us what to play but I think; when a leader says nandri, in that space, what can we do? What songs will be suitable for their styles? It’s like BGM.”
Sridhar’s most memorable entry that he planned was one in the narrow streets of Kolathur. “When Thapalathy (MK Stalin) finished asking for votes in Kolathur, this was when he was an MP, that day, we had speakers and it was grand.” He dreamed of arranging for audio systems when Stalin became chief minister, and later this dream became a reality.
The speakers, mics, and lights are chosen based on frequencies and carefully tailored to each party. The stage is set based on DMK’s black-and-red motif and social justice ideology, VCK’s anti-caste manifesto, and AIADMK’s two-leaf symbol.
Against the backdrop of political campaigns, audio, and light engineers have seen history play out. In Chepauk Stadium, Gunalan saw Kalaignar’s protests against the hike in gas prices; he saw the gradual mark of parai isai entering rallies — “It was the communist parties that brought this tradition into meets and campaigns.” Gradually, his tricks of the trade were sharpened with a keen sense of observation; Thiruma doesn’t talk too much at the opening, AIADMK meetings often have kuthu music, or Seeman has a certain pitch when he speaks.
According to Gunalan, engineers are always aware of citizens, outside festivals, campaigns, or functions. “In a public place, we won’t block the road with stages, and if it’s school time, we will plan a space for them to walk past. If they close the road, they’ll put the stage across.”
Before LED, other struggles
In a time before LED lights, Gunalan recalls wrapping serial bulbs with plastic paper. “Back then, there was only warm light and they would glow colours after being wrapped with papers. For instance, if a thalaivar is wearing a red shirt, we would need red paper for that. But then LED bulbs made an entrance around 10 years ago.”
According to the engineer, “If there are 100 bulbs, say one bulb fused, the rest of the 99 bulbs won’t light up. Whether it is a marriage, church programme, birthday or live TV show, we have to fix it immediately, In our work, we don’t have the luxury to wait the next day,” He adds, that since election campaigns turned door-to-door, there has been a lag in business. “Often, people promise us around one lakh for a big campaign, and yet they give us only `20,000 by the end,” he adds.
Over the years, Sridhar and Gunalan have watched candidates come and go, felt the pulse of voters, and silently played a part in arranging campaigns; “Whether it is Amman, or Maadha or Muslim gods, no matter the caste, everyone celebrates and there are beautiful lights, we show the beauty of the ooru in these moments. All functions need these lights, we need light to bring people from the darkness,” Sridhar signs off.