Take this pot of life,
Drink it in one shot.
Why die a little everyday,
Give it your all and die with gusto.
The song "Zinda" ("Alive"), from the 2013 film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, encourages people to embrace life to the fullest. The song benefits from a high-power progressive rock style composed by the trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy with strong lyrics by Prasoon Joshi, who also wrote the screenplay. The strength and energy of this song make it a youth anthem for our time.
Siddharth Mahadevan, the son of composer Shankar Mahadevan made his debut as Bollywood playback singer with "Zinda". According to a Bollywood Hungama article, the choice of Siddharth for the final song almost happened by accident:
... Shankar Mahadavan says, "We had recorded a temporary track at the beginning of the shoot last year. We wanted someone who would be high on emotional quotient. Siddharth had done the temporary track that's usually the case; someone in the studio sings the temporary track. We lived with the song for almost a year and finally thought Siddharth was perfect for the song. Rakeysh and Prasoon both thought that Siddharth was perfect".
Siddharth tells the story from his perspective in The Hindu:
“I didn’t think that song would be given to me. Rakeysh uncle encouraged me and said he wanted my voice for it. Initially, I had thought it would be a trial. I was nervous and excited while recording the song,” says Siddharth. He did not have the luxury of taking things for granted though his father Shankar Mahadevan was the composer. “I had to do justice to the song. I knew dad wouldn’t hesitate to replace me with an experienced singer if I failed to do a good job,” he says.
Siddharth's strong vocals earned him an International Indian Academy Award nomination for Best Playback Singer (Male). Earlier this year, he received the Filmfare R. D. Burman Award which commemorates new talent in the industry.
The song was first heard by the public in a live performance by Farhan Akhtar and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy which was captured and posted online via YouTube on 4 May 2013. At that time the song was identified as "Koyla Kala Hai" ("The color of the coal is black"). The official "Zinda" track was released on 23 May 2013.
Prasoon Joshi earned a Filmfare Award for Best Lyrics for "Zinda". According to a Radio and Music article, the lyrics of the song reflect Joshi's philosophy of life:
"I am a firm believer that one needs to subjugate himself to achieve the path of excellence. And one cannot achieve anything in life without trying enough and by merely giving up. Thus even my song reflected my belief and this is why the song 'Zinda' was written in one go."
In Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, the song is primarily picturized on Japtej Singh who portrays a young Milkha Singh. The song is the backdrop to the story of the boy's struggles and triumphs while living in a refugee camp. Japtej's performance earned him a Best Child Actor at the 20th Annual Life OK Awards.
As picturized on Japtej Singh, the lyrics for "Zinda" can be translated as:
If you are alive take it full on,
Crush it into powder with your feet.Take this pot of life.
Drink it in one shot.
Why die a little everyday,
Give it your all and die with gusto.Coal is black, brought up by the mountains.
Black on the surface, black underneath, black to the core.
But the bugger is for real.If you are alive take it full on
Crush it into powder with your feetTake this pot of life.
Drink it in one shot.
Why die a little everyday,
Give it your all and die with gusto.Coal is black, brought up by the mountains.
Black on the surface, black underneath, black to the core.
But the bugger is for real.Crush it into powder with your feet.
Why let these dreams stop your feet?
Untangle the threads, free your stride.
Who keeps accounts of yesterday?
Who knows about tomorrow?Irrigate the moment.
Place the burning flame on your tongue.
Then even your burnt lips shall sing.
Your wounds shall hum and your pain shall become a melody.If you are alive take it full on,
Crush it into powder with your feet.
The following video playlist features three ways "Zinda" was used in videos for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. A fourth video is a clip from the Farhan Akhtar concert with Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.