Exclusive Premiere: Krantinaari Is All About Grit and Discipline in Grime-Informed ‘Anushasan’ Video

Mumbai-based hip-hop artist Krantinaari fires off observations on the pace and development of the world and its populace on her latest Hindi song “Anushasan,” a grime track with production by C4GE aka Ganesh Murthi.

Invoking marching vocal commands — a nod to her days as an army NCC cadet — Krantinaari also made the bassline for “Anushasan,” which rumbles alongside additional rock riffs from guitarist (and video director) Aryaman Singh. A press release for the song states that Krantinaari “morphs into a news reporter role in ‘Anushasan,’ although she doesn’t adapt the attire of a standard reporter externally, but tries to portray issues of her surroundings through that role.” She references everything from physicist (and recent movie subject) Oppenheimer, cybercrime, chemical drug abuse and more.

“Anushasan,” which means “discipline,” is a fist-tight, hard-hitting rap song from Krantinaari, who is also part of the rap crew Wild Wild Women. With a flow that’s deliberately unpolished, Krantinaari fits right in with the socially-conscious hip-hop pioneered by the likes of Mumbai multilingual crew Swadesi.

The single and music video arrives a few weeks after the artist’s performance at Roskilde Festival in Denmark in June. In the video directed by Singh with cinematography by Abhimanyu Ullas, we see Krantinaari in the streets of Mumbai, while also calling on groups of children and Bharatnatyam dancer Vibha Karnad to add to the raw energy and narrative of the track. “No plans, no grids was the idea that suited as a counter to the title. Things did work extremely well, and it brought in a fresh rawness to the visuals of the song,” the press release says.

Watch the video for “Anushasan” below. Stream the song here.