It couldn’t be faster. By late evening on May 23, a few hours after it became clear that the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party had won a landslide second term in office, the pop Bhojpuri scene lived up to its reputation of churning out instant musical statements on regional as well as national politics. By the end of the day, we already had some of the leading singers and star actors of the Bhojpuri pop and film industry singing odes to the resounding win of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

The Bhojpuri heartland in western Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh anticipated the win and was ready to express it in peppy tunes. In fact, the first song was on the victorious numbers that exit polls had correctly predicted for the BJP and the song was released on the eve of the results.

Leading Bhojpuri pop singer Arvind Akela Kallu, popularly known as Kalluji, heralded Modi’s return with the lines: “Ban gael Modi sarkar, kamal khil gael/ Janta ke mann joge prem phir mil gael/ Seva kari sabke chowkidaar, kamal khil gael (Modi government has been formed, the lotus has bloomed. It has got the love from people’s heart, the Chowkidar will serve all).”

The day results were declared, singer-actor Khesari Lal Yadav came up with a number which talked about Modi’s victory against all the efforts made by the gathbandhan (alliance). The number is taking potshots at the alliance formed by the Rashtriya Janta Dal and Congress in Bihar and the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party in UP. Khesari also credits Modi’s win to the work he did in his tenure: “Kuch na milal gathbandhan lahrayike, aa gael Modi jhanda lehraiyike/ dehle pachhar apna kamwa dikayike, aa gael Modi jhanda lehraiyke (Nothing was gained by making alliance, Modi came back waving the flag/ He defeated the Opposition by his work, Modi came back waving the flag).”

With a strong nationalist pitch, Bhojpuri star singer and actor Pawan Singh, in a duet with Sona Singh, describes how nature and Bharat Mata are now ready to welcome their victorious son. “Poorwa bayariya, urrte badariya, maarela mushki gaganwa/aarti utare chali Bharati maiyaa, vijay bhail mor lalanwa (The easterly winds, the moving clouds and the smiling sky, all join Bharat Mata as she welcomes her victorious son).” The song goes on to extol the Prime Minister for defending and enhancing the country’s honour in the world.

Lending her voice to the celebratory chorus, popular Bhojpuri actress and singer Akshara Singh recalls Prime Minister’s Ganga connect while heralding him as peerless. Akshara sings: “Lahar lahar pheru lahare tiranga, beta ke aashish deli mata Ganga/ Jor kehu naikhe jahan mein, Modijee ke chamake pagariya, garda ural ba aashman mein (The flag is waving again, Mother Ganga blesses her son, there is nobody like him in the world, Modiji’s headgear shines, the sky is dazzled).” She makes it a point to recall the Modi government’s empowering role in women’s lives and how they are celebrating his win: “Naya sapna, hoel apna, aage badhe ke milal azadi/ Chachi kude, mai jhume …  Modi nayak Hindustan mein (New dreams are ours now, we got the freedom to move ahead. Aunt is jumping with joy, mother is thrilled, Modi is India’s leader).”

Interestingly, there is a musical take on a very different stakeholder in poll results—the wife of a contesting candidate. Like family members of candidates taking entrance or recruitment exams, the anxiety of a candidate’s spouse awaiting results isn’t much talked about. In a song which has become quite popular, a wife is gearing up for May 23 with excitement. In a playful number, Rinki Tiwari gets into the mind of a wife who is thinking about the swagger that husband’s success would give her among relatives and neighbours. In the song, the husband is imagined as a BJP candidate hoping to ride the Modi popularity wave.

Rinki sings: “Ab ke dikha dem par-patidar ke/23 ke aawata result bhataar ke/ Jeeti jaayein saiyan ta khub agrayeim, bhagwa rang ke saree  pahen hum jhamkayem/ Zila-zawar mein baate unkar hala, jenhe jayeet hi naam khaali Modi ke naam sunala/ Baaki decision unka aar-paar ke, 23 ke aawata result bhataar ke  (This time I will show to my relatives, kin and neighbours, my husband’s result is coming on 23 rd/ If he wins, I will be filled with pride and walk with a swagger in a saffron sari/ Only Modi’s name is talked about wherever I go, in the district and everywhere/ This time it’s a make or break fight, my husband’s result is coming on the 23rd).”

Though it’s a light-hearted number, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been warning new MPs against any form of power-flaunting or gloating. That was evident in his address to MPs and other leaders last week in the Central Hall of Parliament.

The pop musical landscape of Bhojpuri heartland has registered Modi’s landslide victory with an exuberance that is in sync with the popular mandate his government won in the region. With all its simplicity and celebration of popular mood at the moment, this musical statement seems closer to the popular mind. It’s reflecting the choice of a large section of the electorate better than the pedantic and weighty op-eds in newspapers which, despite pretending to be democratic, are finding it difficult to digest the reality of people’s choice and a clear verdict.