Written by Lungmying Lepcha

A brief analysis of the appearance of the Tibetan national flag in the song “Sadda Haq”.

Rockstar by Imtiaz Ali still remains a classic amongst all the cinephiles. We declare it the Indian or rather better version of Romeo and Juliet .

With the famous dialogues and scenes shot in Prague , the green and red flag character of Jordan played by Ranbir Kapoor, and the song ‘Nadaan Parindey ‘ whose lines trend in the reel world, the movie lives on.

Yet it is this song called ‘Sadda Haq‘ ‘Our Right’ that captured my attention. “Sadda Haq Aithe Rakh “ “Our Right, keep it here”. This song deals with oppression and the fight against it .
The music video features scenes where Tibetan people can be seen waving their national flag as well as a ‘Free Tibet’ flag. These scenes have been shot in Norbulingka Institute.

The Tibetan national flag is clearly visible in the music video. However, due to the censor board’s restrictions, the Free Tibet flag was blurred. Apparently, the director was given the choice to either chop off the whole song sequence or to blur the Free Tibet flag. Being a man who expresses his voice through his art, he apparently chose the second option.

The issue of censorship garnered more attention towards the music video and the film. It brought forth discussions around the Tibetan cause and the domain of censorship.
 
The lyrics of the song strongly reflect the ethos of the Free Tibet movement. The most impactful lines being:
 
Kyun sach ka sabak sikhaye
Why are you teaching me about truth

Jab sach sun bhi na paaye
When you can’t even listen to the truth

Sach koi bole toh
When someone speaks the truth

Tu niyam kanoon bataye
Then you talk about law and order

Tera darr, tera pyar, teri waah
Your fear, your love, your praise

Tu hi rakh, rakh saala
Keep them to yourself

Whether or not the song was meant to simultaneously carry the message of Free Tibet can be left to speculation. That appearance of the flags is nonetheless significant, cannot be denied. After all, these lines resonate with Tibetan refugees’ power of truth in their protest against the CCP.
 
Hence this song can be referred to as a brief tribute to the “Free Tibet Movement” .