- Tune into VOOT and Sports18 to watch the prestigious Indian Oil Durand Cup and listen to the theme song that “captures the love for the oldest football competition” on August 17
Kolkata, 17th August 2022: The Indian Oil Durand Cup 131st edition is all set to release the anthem song featuring star singers, Shaan and Papon which will be broadcasted on Sports18 and live streamed on the VOOT platform.
The anthem captures the affection and essence of the oldest football competition and the most loved sport. It has been incorporated into 5 languages, English, Hindi, Assamese and Bengali and Manipuri.
Soulfully rendering the anthem song, Shaan said “Well, the Durand Cup is something that all of us Indians should be very proud of. It’s the oldest tournament in Asia, the third oldest in the world, going on for 135 years now. The Indian Amry is associated with the Durand cup, so I followed this league very closely. I’ve had the opportunity to sing the anthem in 2019 for Bikram Ghosh, the Durand Cup anthem and again, and to get this opportunity through Papon to sing it again for the 2022 Durand Cup is obviously a matter of pride and I’m very happy to be part of this anthem. To sing the song or work on the song with Papon. It’s always fun because Papon is not just a great musician, a great singer, but also a very dear friend, a lovely human being, we have a very close connection. It’s always a pleasure to work with him, I’m a big fan of his work, not just as a singer, but also as a composer. So, I really enjoyed singing the song and singing along with Papon and all the talented musicians who are involved in the song.”
Sharing his excitement, Papon said, “The reason behind the composition of the anthem, Durand cup is because I had this opportunity of meeting up with an amazing gentleman and sir Lieutenant General Rana Pratap Kalita. It was really an honor and moment of pride and also that he belongs to the Eastern region. It just came up in our conversation about the Durand Cup and we spoke about the anthem. This was an opportunity I got from the Army to compose and produce the anthem and I grabbed it with both hands. This time it was challenging because I had to incorporate it into five languages – English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali and Manipuri because the football trophy this year is going from Kolkata to Guwahati to Imphal, the three cities. So it was a massive responsibility to create something amazing and something which will showcase the power, history and multilingualism covering so many different languages and regions. So then I roped in Shaan because he is a dear friend and obviously because his voice is very celebratory, happy and Bengal and nationwide, he’s so popular. Of course, my dear friend Shaan representing Bengal, me representing Assam, and I approached Rewben Mashangva because he’s one person who’s really respected and has done amazing work in that region, so, he also agreed so that’s how we all came in and I composed the Durand Cup anthem. The history of the Durand Cup is so amazing that it is just an honor to be part of it in some way and I’m happier that I’m creating the anthem for the Cup this year which is a very significant year because this year 20 teams including all ISL teams are taking part. So, it’s much bigger than ever and it’s really nice that Asia’s oldest football league is opening up and shaping into a new avatar which I think is going to be really watched and celebrated across India, and across all football lovers of the region.”
Enjoy and celebrate the love for football with the anthem song specially composed and sung by Papon and Shaan
About Durand Cup: A symbol of India’s football history and culture, the Durand Cup is Asia’s oldest and the world’s third oldest football tournament. Organized by the Indian Armed Forces, the Durand Cup has been the breeding ground for India’s best footballing talent, over the years. The inaugural edition happened in Shimla in 1888, when it started off as an Army Cup, open only to the British Indian Army troops in India, but soon opened up to civilian teams. Named after its founder, Sir Mortimer Durand, Foreign Secretary of British India from 1884 to 1894, the iconic tournament reached its 130th edition in 2021. Mohun Bagan and East Bengal have been the most successful teams, winning the tournament 16 times each.
About VOOT: VOOT is India’s leading digital video-on-demand streaming service from the house of Viacom18. With a content library of more than 80,000 + hours across Viacom18’s network content, exclusive content around network shows and VOOT Originals, the platform caters to varying needs of discerning audiences across segments. VOOT is the Country’s most engaging platform in the ad-supported service space. VOOT continues to take the leadership mantle on innovation, across content, technology, and marketing initiatives, aimed at providing an immersive experience to its users.