Devika S S, a Class IX student from Kerala, is winning accolades after a video of her singing a Himachali folk song went viral on social media. She is a student of Kendriya Vidyalaya at Pattom in Thiruvananthapuram.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has praised the girl for the song which she recorded as part of the government's 'Eka Bharat Sreshtha Bharat' programme.
“Proud of the girl, Devika. Her beautiful rendition strengthens the essence of 'Ek Bharat Sreshtha Bharat',” the prime minister tweeted in Malayalam along with a report about the girl in Manorama News.
Earlier, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur too praised Devika and shared her song on social media with a note applauding her talent.
"This is Kerala's daughter Devika. Her melodious singing has enhanced the glory of Himachal and won our hearts. There is a certain magic toher voice. I pray to the God and Goddesses of Himachal to bless the girl. Let the world take note of her talent. I also invite Devika to Himachal Pradesh to learn more about our culture. You should definitely come here. Our best wishes for your bright future,” the Himachal CM tweeted in Hindi.
Devika, a native of Tirumala in Thiruvananthapuram, learnt the song as part of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat campaign that aims to familiarise children with the culture of other States.
Devika is yet to come in to terms with the massive appreciation her song has received. Her school teacher S R Devi, who had earlier worked in Himachal, suggested her to sing the song.
“I can't believe all this. It was Devi madam who asked me to sing this song. I learnt it from mobile phone and recorded it. Then I sent it to madam. She posted it on our school's Facebook page on September 28. I thought only my friends and teachers would watch it. But now it has gone viral and over four million people have watched it," Devika said.
She said she could learn it easily as she had heard the song earlier.
State Cultural Affairs Minister A K Balan also called Devika and asked congratulated her.
No training in music
Devika has not learnt music. “After the song went viral, my teacher Lovely Janardhanan has offered to teach me music,” she said. Devika learns songs by listening them on mobile phone. “I used to take part in arts events since when I was in lower classes. My teachers and friends have always been encouraging. Teachers sometimes make me sing during breaks,”she said.
Devika's parents are also surprised to see the recognition their daughter was getting. "We never expected that her song will be noticed this much. For us, it's all god's blessing,"Devika's mother Sangeetha said.
Sangeetha said she realised her daughter's talent when she was in LKG as she learnt a song easily. "We could not train her in music due to certain circumstances. Now we will teach her for sure," she said.