Listen to Story On a bustling movie night in a Russian town, every seat was occupied, keen viewers fetched chairs and ladders from their homes to catch the film. This was an Indian film: 'Disco Dancer', and the crowd went ecstatic on its soundtrack, "Jimmy Jimmy". Each home was empty and the streets in front of the clubs were full.
The song from the movie, released in Soviet Russia in 1984, became an anthem and several generations of Russians grooved to it. But what do Russians think of "Jimmy Jimmy Aaja Aaja" now, and do Indian songs still find a place in their hearts? Disco Dancer was released at the peak of the Cold War, when the United States of Soviet Russia (USSR), had erected a wall against cultural imports from the West. But that time is long gone, and the internet has facilitated and democratised consumption of pop culture across the globe, including in Russia.
Two years after Disco Dancer was released, then USSR leader Mikhail Gorbachev visited India. On his visit, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi introduced him to Amitabh Bachchan and told him "He is the biggest superstar of India". "But my daughter only knows Mithun Chakraborty," said Gorbachev.
The film Disco Dancer and the song 'Jimmy Jimmy' became a phenomenon in Russia. Even today, after 40 years, nothing has changed. Russia's embrace of Indian culture, especially Hindi film songs as tight, if not more, than most political embraces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi embrac.
