Mangaluru: In house choir of Mangaluru International Airport lent its voice to the rest of Karnataka on October 28. On this day more than 1 Crore voices across the State took part in the ‘Koti Kanta Gayana’ campaign of the department of Kannada and culture, Government of Karnataka in the run-up to the 67th Kannada Rajyotsava day on November 1. MIA is dedicated to partaking in the rich cultural legacy of Karnataka through such events.
The campaign started with a reverential tribute to ‘Rashtrakavi’ Kuvempu with the airport team rendering the state anthem Jaya Bharata Jananiya Tanujate penned by him mellifluously. The Karnataka state government officially declared this song as the state song on January 6, 2004. Now, all official government functions in Karnataka start with the rendering of this song, which extols the richness of the land in its myriad forms.
Next up was the song Vishwa Vinuthana Vidya Chetana that ‘Nadoja’ Chennavera Kanavi penned. The singing ensemble then rendered yet another power-packed song Baarisu Kannada Dindimava, again penned by Kuvempu. This song is a call to people to extol the virtue of the Kannada language. Hacchevu Kannadada Deepa by eminent poet D. S. Karki reminded people of their duty to keep the lamp of Kannada burning bright.
The evergreen song Huttidare Kannada Nadalli Huttabeku rendered by the thespian Dr. Rajkumar in the film Aakasmika, lyrics of which Hamsalekha, an eminent poet penned, took the campaign to its grand finale. The large gathering also took a pledge to preserve, protect and uphold the glory of Kannada and its culture. The airport also displayed standees extending Rajyotsava greetings in the run-up to the State formation day.
