Singing away into the annals of Guinness Book of World Records is no new feat. People have sung hours and days for a place in the prestigious tome. However, a Non Resident Indian has done it differently this time by entering the book not with the number of hours but the variety of languages!
Sai “Psychuk” Mannapragada earned this fame by singing the patriotic song ‘Maa Tujhe Salaam' in a mind-boggling 265 languages. What's more, in an innovative gesture, he attempted to share the record with over 3,000 listeners!
It took one year of research of the world languages for him to compose the lyrics which he crooned at an event called Symposium of Business, Music and Art.
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The event was held jointly by the Psymphony Inc. and his sponsor Manjeera Constructions Group at the Mayfair Community Centre in San Jose, California on May 16 this year, a press note said. The rendition had been reportedly heard by many local community leaders, city and state officials, and local Bay Area music and dance patrons. After the singing, it took a drill of three months for the adjudicators of the Guinness World Records Limited to examine the evidence, and make sure he sang only in existing languages! After that, Mr.Mannapragada was duly presented with the certificate, by the Grand-Marshal of the Federation of Indian Associations' Independence Day Parade and Bollywood actor Aftab Shivadasani and Chairman and Convenor of for FIA Festival of India celebrations Romesh Japra on August 15.
Two records
In a unique gesture, Mr. Mannapragada not only broke his own record at the certification event by singing the same lyric in 300 languages, but also made everyone from the 3000-plus audience sing along with him, thereby giving each one of them an opportunity to claim a record of their own, the press note said. He said it was wonderful to share the record with the entire community.
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Based in San Francisco, Mr.Mannapragada is the Chief Technology Officer of Picogen Inc., the CEO of Psymphony Inc. and the chairman of a non-profit organisation Folklore Arts Research and Music Institute.