"Lungi Dance" is an Indian song composed and sung by

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rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

Yo Yo Honey Singh Hirdesh Singh (born 15 March 1983), known professionally as Yo Yo Honey Singh or simply Honey Singh, is an Indian music producer, rapper, singer, songwriter and an actor. He started out in 2003 as a session and recording artist, and became a b ...

for the soundtrack of the 2013 Bollywood film ''

Chennai Express ''Chennai Express'' () is a 2013 Indian Hindi-language action comedy film directed by Rohit Shetty and produced by Ronnie Screwvala, Siddharth Roy Kapur, Gauri Khan and Karim Morani, based on a story by K. Subash, with a screenplay written by ...

''. The soundtrack was officially released on 1 July 2013. The song is a tribute to

Rajinikanth Shivaji Rao Gaikwad (born 12 December 1950), known professionally as Rajinikanth, is an Indian actor, producer and screenwriter. In a career spanning over five decades, he has done 160 films that includes films in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannad ...

Release

"Lungi Dance" was released as the ninth single from the album. The launch of the original music of the film took place in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, where performances were seen by the film's music directors and cast members. The star-studded event's telecast rights were sold to a TV channel for INR48 crore (US$7.7 million). The song is said to have significantly more popularised the

lungi The lungi is a type of sarong that originated in the Indian Subcontinent. The Lungi, which usually multicoloured, is a men's skirt usually tied around the lower waist below the navel. it can be worn as casual wear and night wear, in places an ...

, a traditional dress in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Lyrics

The song was composed by Yo Yo Honey Singh, as a tribute to actor

Critical response

"Lungi Dance" received mainly mixed reviews from critics in India. Mohar Basu of

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wrote in his review, "I am quite assured that not every Rajni fan has Lungi as their favorite attire and neither will they appreciate Lassi in their coconut! Not that I was expecting meaning in the lyrics of the song, but the song's words are as meaningless as the aimless Deepika Padukone shaking her leg in this too-desperate-to-be-funny song." The

Firstpost ''Firstpost'' is an Indian online news and media website. The site is a part of the Network 18 media conglomerate owned by Reliance Industries, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC-TV18. The ''Network 18'' group was originally owned by Raghav ...

review said, "I may have to go swallow some Kafka and Faulkner after this column to feel smart again, but at least I know that I have done my Patient Zero duty in spreading the Lungi Dance virus. Thalaivar, everyone!

Controversy

The film's music composing duo,

Vishal–Shekhar Vishal–Shekhar are an Indian music composer, production, singing and songwriting duo consisting of Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani from Mumbai. Known predominantly for their work as music composers in Hindi cinema, Vishal–Shekhar have a ...

, were under the impression that they were the only musicians working on ''Chennai Express''. Meanwhile, Honey Singh was asked by the film director to perform in the promotional song of "Lungi Dance". When rumours surfaced about Honey Singh's involvement,

Vishal Dadlani Vishal Dadlani (born 28 June 1973) is an Indian singer, songwriter and music composer. He is one half of the duo Vishal–Shekhar, Front Man and vocalist of one of India's leading rock bands called Pentagram. As a singer he has sung various h ...

tweeted, "It's hilarious and pathetic how desperately this tacky rape-rapper is trying to ride on the fame of SRK and Chennai Express (sic)". The rumour turned out to be true and the composers felt cheated. Dadlani and

Shekhar Ravjiani Shekhar Ravjiani is an Indian singer, music director, record producer and actor. He is one half of the Bollywood composing/producing duo Vishal–Shekhar, since 1999. Personal life Ravjiani was born in a Kutchi family. He lives in South Mumbai ...

did not promote the film's music nor attended the film's promos.

References

{{authority control 2013 songs Indian songs Hindi film songs Yo Yo Honey Singh songs Pop-folk songs