CHENNAI: It was the evening of April 3 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Ravindra Jadeja had just got out to Mark Wood in a clash between Chennai Super Kings and Lucknow Super Giants. As Jadeja took the long walk back to the pavilion, the entire stadium erupted. It was a moment they had been waiting for four years. To see their captain MS Dhoni walk out to bat in a ground that has been his Indian Premier League home for a decade.
The cheers only got louder as Dhoni strode onto the field with a prelude of a Tamil song from Kamal Haasan-starrer Vikram. The fans seemed to be settling down as their ‘Thala’ almost reached the crease. Then the lyrics of the song broke out in the speakers, “Once upon a time, there lived a ghost... he was known to be a killer and feared the most,” inducing another high in the noise from the crowd that could have brought down the entire stadium. Now, if you are not from Tamil Nadu or do not know the context of the song, it would not have had as much an impact. But for those aware of it, which was the vast majority of the fans in the ground, it was a well-orchestrated moment of perfection that gave them goosebumps.
The man behind the moment is KC Senthil Kumar aka DJ Zen. “I did not expect to get such a reaction. The next day, the number of people tagging me in memes and reels...it had such an impact. It takes roughly 30 seconds to walk to the crease. We had a rough calculation and it worked out perfectly,” says Zen, the DJ for CSK’s home games at Chepauk.
Making the choice
However, there is only so much DJs can plan. Sometimes, they have to go with their instincts. Zen had one such moment when he was DJing for the India-Australia ODI in the third week of March. Virat Kohli was batting on 49 and Zen played a section of Porkanda Singam from Vikram where the translated lyrics meant “A champion lion in the arena will never fear anyone, Never will his valour diminish or die ever. Valiant warrior!” Given the context of the match and where Kohli is in his career, it worked out perfectly for the crowd and was even trending on social media platforms.
While DJs and music have been a part of the IPL for years, the landscape and how it works has changed drastically. “It was not playing a major role compared to now. In the last few years, the importance of concerts and sing alongs, the vibe has changed. It has become a part of the whole experience,” says Zen. How do they pick the songs and moments? More often than not they go in with a set playlist, largely featuring hero introduction and motivational numbers, which they get pre-approved from the franchise. Once the match begins, they keep their options open and play according to the situation and reception from the crowd. Songs are picked based on how the fans perceive the athletes. Zen says that the role of social media, especially Instagram reels, is significant in the song/music selection. For them, it is about the response from the crowd. “In the past, apart from Appadi Podu (a song from Ghilli), no one knew Tamil songs. Then Kolaveri di. Today, everyone knows most songs because of the reels,” he says, adding that it is one of the reasons why more Tamil songs, especially of that of Anirudh Ravichandar’s could be heard from TNPL in Tirunelveli to Asia Cup in United Arab Emirates last year.
Playing by the rules
Several fans have had different kinds of experiences. Billgates B, an IT professional who was in the ground for the game against Rajasthan Royals, says, “We get excited when we watch reels, but to be there for those moments when DJs elevate the entry moment, it was surreal. Many of them could not even hear the songs, such was the buzz.” However, Ashwath Ram, a regular visitor to Chepauk, feels that it is not as memorable as the past and that the choice of songs seemed limited. “I wasn’t able to listen properly, especially on the MCC/Pavilion side,” he said.
Zen explains the challenges and the set of rules they have to follow. They can’t play music when the ball is in play. For boundaries and wickets, they have to play the team anthem. There are copyright issues as well with only licensed songs allowed to be played. There are also areas where they have to keep sound lower like the broadcast area and the dressing rooms. Prashanth Amir, who donned the DJ’s hat in 2018 and 2019, says that the 3.5 hours are the most stressful time of work. He recalls a moment where he played the Believer song from Imagine Dragons when CSK were struggling, which made the entire stadium sing along and changed the mood of the game. Once Chennai won, he got a call from the team management and was lauded for it.
While the sound of Chepauk has evolved over the years with the influence of social media and Tamil pop culture, on Sunday, Zen gave a nostalgic moment to remember for the 35,000 fans as he played the famous Baasha number (Baasha paaru), an emotion for most people in this part of India, when Dhoni walked to bat against Punjab Kings. Some of the fans’ videos have them showing literal gooseflesh they experienced at the moment. So far, they have got to witness Once upon a time, Thirai Thee Pidikum (The screen will be on fire)’ and Baasha Paaru (look at the don). What is it going to be come Saturday?
Don’t be surprised if it’s Baasha because of the obvious Mumbai connection.