Arivu’s blatant exclusion from Enjoy Enjaami became recently evident at the song’s performance at the inauguration of the 44th Chess Olympiad in Chennai.
At the inauguration of the 44th Chess Olympiad held in Chennai, the song, Enjoy Enjaami was performed by singers Dhee and Kidakuzhi Mariyammal and the credit of the music composer was given to Santosh Narayan. This specific crediting was done although Arivu penned and composed the song.
This fact was reinforced by rapper Arivu in an Instagram post as a response to the snub caused by the credit of the song’s composition being given to musician Santosh Narayan. Arivu clarified that he wrote, composed and performed Enjoy Enjaami. Many fans and social media users expressed their disappointment and anger at said snub since Arivu had even been mentioned during the event, far from being credited for his work.
In the lengthy Instagram post, accompanied by a screen grab from the music video of the song, Arivu detailed the six months he spent toiling as the composer, writer and performer of the track. He also laid rest to claims made by Santosh Narayanan and the independent record label, Maajja that said that both Dhee and Arivu had contributed equally to the project. Arivu, on the contrary, stated that he did not receive any kind of external support for his work.
Listeners of Arivu’s music appreciate the socially relevant lyrics of his music, an attribute which Enjoy Enjaami is not exempt. In multiple interviews, Arivu has raved about the origin of the song, speaking on his background and heritage and referencing his grandmother, Valliamma. For instance, in an interview with TNM’s Balakrishna Ganeshan on March 15, 2021, Arivu said that Enjoy Enjaami is as political as his other works. “My conversations with my grandmother Valliamma formed the basis of the song,” Arivu said, adding, “My grandmother was taken to Sri Lanka as a bonded laborer, and when she returned, nothing had changed.
We continued to live landless. She educated my mother by doing dishes in several houses. Because of her, my mother became an educationist, and as a result, I am an artist. She struggled throughout her life and made several sacrifices to make our lives better. So, of course, I wanted to make a mention of her. I will continue to write many more songs about her if given an opportunity.”
Arivu acknowledges that the production of the song was a team effort but clarifies that this does not give the label or the other collaborators the right to invisibilize the struggles of his ancestors who are heavily referenced in the track. “No doubt it (the song) calls everyone together. But it
doesn’t mean that’s not the history of Valliammal or the landless tea plantation slave ancestors of mine,” Arivu states in his Instagram post. “Anyone can snatch away your treasure when you’re asleep. Never when you are awake. Jai Bhim. The truth will always win in the end. #enjoyenjaami #appropriationart.”
These recent events have reignited discussions surrounding the appropriation of Enjoy Enjaami. The initial discussion started last year when Dhee and Canada-based Tamil rapper San Vincent De Paul were featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. The two musical artists were credited for the two hit songs Enjoy Enjaami and Neeye Oli, respectively, both tracks whose lyrics were co-written by Arivu but who was conveniently left out of the article.
This snub led to a public outcry with many calling out Rolling Stone India, as well as the artists concerned, for sidelining Arivu and the Dalit-Bahujan people that he paid tribute to through the song Enjoy Enjaami.
While addressing the Rolling Stone Magazine controversy, Dhee stated, “The Rolling stone India cover from last year was based around San and I’s upcoming individual albums and the main reason as to why we’re in this particular cover together. It was neither about Enjoy Enjaami nor Neeye Oli.
The song names weren’t mentioned on the cover too that we shared. That particular cover story was about our upcoming albums and Maajja as a platform. What I was told was that there was a rollout plan where Rollingstone was going to publish cover stories and articles on Arivu, Santhosh Narayanan, and all Maajja artists. This was also announced as a tweet by Rollingstone before our cover was published and I was happy to see that it was.”
In a late-night Instagram statement, singer Dhee put out a statement about the controversy around the song Enjoy Enjaami. The song, she said, “was created with the purest intention of bringing us closer to each other and the life around us.” Dhee, who has been criticized for stealing the spotlight from Arivu on multiple occasions concerning the hit song, said, “I have full control over what I say, do, and the things I share on my social media and I have always made sure I give credits to Arivu as the writer/singer and Santhosh Narayanan as the producer/composer at every point.
I have proudly spoken about them, specifically Arivu, every chance I got. At no point have I diminished or downplayed both of their importance in Enjoy Enjaami. I’ve only ever wanted to celebrate, and highlight their work and I’ve been doing that at every step and stage. I don’t have any control over the way our work is being shared and promoted by external sources.”
About the Chess Olympiad performance, Dhee said, “The event organizers approached Arivu and me to perform for the event, but as he was not available and, in the US, we played his voice track. He was spoken about at the event for his words and his performance of Enjoy Enjaami.”
