MUSIC – MJ5 STEPS IN WITH ‘BAWAAL’

MJ5 is a dance crew based in Mumbai and the winners of India’s Dancing Superstar Competition (2013). They have come a long way from being contestants to choreographing and writing their song. They performed a variety of moonwalks until they held the world record of having 16 variants of the same. Since then, they have risen the slope and winning the competition was only the first step to the peak.

The first wave of lockdown due to the coronavirus, unlike any other, was the opportunity for everyone around the globe to explore and dive in the sea of creativity, hoping to survive with a new art form. Similarly, they recognised that India “…lacks a strong boy and girl band culture”. They also found themselves in a watertight compartment when the beats of the song limited their freedom of movement, so they decided to write a song that would allow them to showcase their talent to the fullest. And that is how the song’s motivation and inspiration arose before Bawaal was written.

Bawaal features the 5 boys in vibrant coloured suits dancing to this catchy song at the Maldives that makes the feet tap and loop the lyrics in the mind on a repeat. While Kartik, Rohit and Dennis, from the team, are the singers, Dixant composed the song and wrote the lyrics with Nitish. They produced the song with One Digital Entertainment that also works with our very own internet sensation, Prajakta Koli (@mostlysane). Hence, the promotions also included a treat to our eyes when we watched the boys dance with her on her YouTube as well as Instagram page and wasn’t that such a fun video! She then uploaded a story with the band and announced that MJ5 had dropped their new single. While she was seen in a white tee paired with a white blazer and blue denim jeans, the boys wore bright coloured suits.

The band was seen to collaborate with various content creators and share reels on their page (@mj5_official). While Prajakta Koli (@mostlysane) posted a video dancing to the rhythm of the song, MJ5 was seen to bring out the creativity when they collaborated with various content creators like Heli Daruwala, Dhvani Bhanushali et al. and special features like the sensational choreographer, Terence Lewis and music director, Sachi Gupta who moved together in a rhythm to do the hook step and gauged the audience’s attention with a different opening step with every reel they posted.

Well, with no surprise, this song attracted a lot of audiences and became a sensation in no time with 12 million+ views on Youtube and an ever-increasing number of followers on Instagram and soon, the MJ5 band will be India’s answer to BTS (Bangton Boys – South Korean boy band).