What happens when people decide to protest against something?
They go on a strike, do a candle march, write slogans, hold placards, make posters and a few others take a violent form and create a ruckus. On the contrary, this young rapper named Sofia Ashraf from Chennai came up with this innovative method of voicing her opinion and getting people to sign the petition for her cause.
What’s her cause you ask? Hindustan Unilever had a thermometer construction company in Kodaikanal from the year 1982 to 2001. It was closed down in 2001 because of the massive protest from people against the factory waste containing mercury that they were dumping in a forest behind the factory.
The workers in the factory were allegedly made to work in inhospitable conditions without proper health regulations, and, as a result, many of them have developed severe health issues for which they are demanding a compensation from the company. The allegations state that as many as 600 people have been severely affected and nearly 45 people have died because of mercury exposure. The company has denied all allegations and have refused to pay the plaintiffs.
This rap song, set to the tune of Nicki Minaj’s song, “Anaconda,” takes a dig at the company to clean up their act. The video was shared by a campaigning organization named Jhatkaa.