Himanta Biswa Sarma's musical U-turn: From "Who is Shah Rukh Khan?" to 'Swades' melody in his video

It was a historic day for Assam as the state proudly unveiled its new permanent assembly building after 51 years of anticipation on July 30. The momentous occasion was indeed a great achievement and feat for Assam, symbolizing progress and growth. However, as they say, there's always a twist in the tale!

A day after the grand launch of the assembly building, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to Twitter to share a video of the ceremony. Everything seemed ordinary until the audience recognized a familiar tune in the background music – it was none other than the iconic song "Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera" from the Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's movie 'Swades'.

জনতাৰ সেৱাত উৎসৰ্গিত অসম বিধানসভাৰ নতুন ভৱন 🙏

Some memorable moments from yesterday’s inauguration of Assam’s new Legislative Assembly building. pic.twitter.com/XtlMteseBj

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) July 31, 2023

The revelation came as a surprise to many, considering that earlier in January, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had claimed that he did not know anything about Shah Rukh Khan or his movie 'Pathaan.' 

Chief Minister Sarma could have easily opted for some traditional Assamese music or collaborated with local musicians for the video. Many questioned why Bollywood music was borrowed when Assam boasts a rich heritage of its own. In fact, the state is known for its talented musicians, and giving them an opportunity to showcase their art could have been a wonderful gesture.

Speaking to India Today NE, Kamalakhya Dey, the Working President of Assam Pradesh Congress Committee, criticized the Chief Minister, stating that he seemed indifferent to Assamese culture and musicians. He noted that while Sarma often talks about promoting Assamese culture, he rarely provides opportunities to local talents. 

Reacting to the video, Congress MP Abdul Khaliq suggested that using the music of Assam's legendary artists like Bhupen Hazaruka or Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla on Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's video would have been more fitting.

Interestingly, some musicians from Assam refrained from commenting on the matter.

The intriguing question that lingers is whether Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma will continue to surprise us with more Bollywood music in his future Twitter videos. Netizens are already speculating whether we might soon see more SRK movie music in Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's posts.