The last phrase of “Big Dawgs”. Hanumankind was always different, from when you listened to his song, Daily Dose. He became an instant indie hero, having the flow of a seasoned American rapper, but taking any and every moment to embrace his roots. If you assumed by roots he meant his Kerala heritage and Bangalore city urban gusto-he’s here to correct you. Here is Run it Up, ft. the brilliant Kalmi. Visuals by visionary director Bijoy Shetty.
The Cinematography and the Tale
The narrative is set by Hanumankind. The visuals are brought to life by Shetty’s direction. The urban phrase of “running it up” is “making money quickly, hustling with a fever”. Courtesy, Urban Dictionary. Travis Scott, Mos Def and MF DOOM have all spat bars about what your social purpose in life becomes. Here, an artistic angle is born-within the discipline of martial arts.
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The frame begins with Hanumankind leading a massive pack of “parched for more” youngbloods. One might say he’s being chased too. All in the eyes of the beholder.
Now, the music. The traditional chenda beat that audibly adorns the temple festivities in Kerala rings about. The best part of the beat? There is a variation of the rhythm that is found in most parts of India. Hanumankind attests his flow to this, swerving through the spaces like a starved explorer.
“I put money down on all of us
On my people now, on what I love”
He speaks of faith, of the hustle and what he truly believes people from his motherland can achieve. The cinema of Shetty’s movie is married to the song, from every angle. Sooraj’s footsteps running are inserted within fills-almost to say that don’t forget this is a music video. Another well made, thoughtful storytelling feast.
The Places and the Arts
There are 8 martial arts depicted throughout the scenery of this video. From Kerala, it is
Kalariyapayattu-the martial art form
Theyyam-the expressive dance form.
Garudan Parava-the flight of Garuda.
Chendamelam-The chenda(drum) ensemble.
Urumi-The “rope-like” blade performance.
From Manipur- Thang-Ta
Maharashtra-Mardani Khel
From Punjab-Gatka Khel
Well, it isn’t surprising or random what is chosen. These art forms have similarity in movements, something seen within a lot of frames within the video. There is an ebb and flow just to mirror the moments in life-the song drops to a slow tempo just to build at an alarming pace.
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If you see any of these performances individually, this is exactly the tempo that is kept. At a point, Hanumankind is charged with a madness. He matches the tempo and barks at a 2x pace. This especially, sticks with you-
We want the freedom to live and the freedom to have the things we been lackin’, my bruh
So what are we lackin’? (Huh?)
I could point it out, so much that’s around, better settle down (Woo)
No point doing that or they send the hounds (Yeah)
Bite me in the ass, put me in the ground (Ayy)
Turn me into ash, culture carried down (Ayy)
From those who came up before me (Ayy)
I’m here to change up the story (Yeah)
Find me at work in the morning (Yeah, yeah)
Find me where people are mourning, man (Yeah) ’cause death is around every corner (Yeah)
For all of us
It is difficult to create this intersection between good art, and meaningful words. Bijoy Shetty resonates with Hanumankind in layers, which is where he is able to depict the fervour of the song. With his American accent, Indian roots-he has always wanted to connect the art he loves to the place he does. With music like this, he’ll never miss the mark. Much love Hanumankind, run it up.
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Self professed metalhead, moderately well read. If the music has soul, it's whole to me. The fact that my bio could have ended on a rhyme and doesn't should tell you a lot about my personality.
