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Tajik Jimmy, back in the U.S.S.R. they loved India

"Goro Ki Na Kalo Ki Duniya Hain Dilwalo Ki" 
Not Whites, Not Blacks, the World belongs to those with a mighty heart.

You just witnessed a performance by Baimurat Allaberiyev, a 37-year old Tajik worker, an ex-Soviet Army man and a singing sensation in Russia, who hauls cardboard boxes in a Moscow shopping store and sometimes works at construction sites.

His performances first surfaced on Youtube in 2008 ( 4 June 2008, to be exact), most of these had him performing Bappi Lahiri's (now re-discovered) hit number “Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy Aaja” from “Disco Dancer” (1983), but always the version which starts with song "Goro Ki Na Kalo Ki". The video, probably, first captured by someone who found his entertaining and amusing, became a Youtube hit in Russia and adjoining region. Soon, people began to seek him to make more videos. He didn't seem to mind.

More videos followed. Baimurat "Tajik Jimmy" Allaberiyev, became a viral phenomena.

In April 2009, journalist Roman Gruzov, tracked him down and after witnessing a performance, flew him to St. Petersburg to open a concert by famous British electronica band, Asian Dub Foundation. [The Story in Russian Paper Bolshoi gorod (Big City) ( Google translateded link ) , Gruzov notes that in 2008, related videos for Tajik Jimmy were about attacks on Tajiks in Russia.]

Tajik Jimmy performed on stage. All he needed was a steel bucket and a live audience.

He started with "I am a disco Dancer"



and then followed up with Jimmy Jimmy Jimmy Aaja


Story of Tajik's Disco Dancer and this concert soon appeared in The St. Petersburg Times

Baimurat Allaberiyev became Jimmy while he was still in school, stuyding at some place in Tajakistan. He took on the name when people often started asking him to sing that 'Jimmy' song at weddings. And he would sing the Indian song for them. The boy voice, drum sound, synthesizer sound, some dancing and the girl voice. And then one day, many years later, entertaining one such request, he sang for someone having a mobile phone with a small camera and a small microphone.

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Comments

  1. OMG, Vinayak. I badly needed those laughs after a day which went steadily downhill! Thank you, thank you for posting those links - your singing Tajik is a hoot!

    ReplyDelete
  2. enjoyed !
    certainly a "viral" phenomena ....
    विरल ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have a younger cousin brother who used to dance crazy to those 'Mithun' numbers when he was a kid.
    At little get-togethers, Uncles and Aunties would ask him to dance and he would happily oblige, singing out - salaam seth, salam seth, kuch apne layak kaam seth, aap to khaye murg mussallam, apni to bas rice plate , and moving his shoulders like Mithun...you may imagine if you dare.

    I met this cousin yesterday after a long time, and I played these videos to him and showed him what he could have been. I couldn't get him to dance like the old day's for the cam. But we had fun remembering the good old days.

    So I thought of sharing there videos.

    Tajik Jimmy is infectious! I couldn't stop head bobbing while I listened to these videos and did this post.

    ReplyDelete

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