A still from Action. (Image courtesy: YouTube)
Highlights
- "This video shows our love and appreciation for Bollywood": will.i.am
- "Thank you, India and Bollywood," he added
- Black Eyed Peas have earlier also made tracks inspired by Indian culture
Buckle up for Action, the new music video from Black Eyed Peas, which uses deep fake technology to replace the faces of Rajinikanth and other actors with those of the band members in scenes from films such as Enthiran. If that sounds epic - it is. The video begins with a Star Wars-style scrolling warning - "Do not believe everything you see." In the caption to the video shared on Black Eyed Peas' YouTube channel, the band writes that they have been fans of Indian music from Asha Bhosle to Rahman and that this is their way of paying tribute. The list of films from which scenes have been used include Rajinikanth's 2010 blockbuster Enthiran, Ajay Devgn's Singham, the SS Rajamouli-directed Maryada Ramanna and 2015 Tamil film Aambala. Swedish film Kopps also makes an appearance.
On YouTube, the caption reads: "The Black Eyed Peas have been inspired by Indian culture from the beginning of our career. From Asha Bhosle to A.R Rahman, Indian music has influenced our songs on more than one occasion...This video for ACTION shows our love and appreciation for Bollywood and the imagination and awesomeness it brings to the screen. Thank you India and Bollywood."
In a tweet, Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am gave examples of his previous albums Elephunk and Monkey Business, both of which were inspired by Indian music, and wrote: "I've always loved music from India. Elephunk and Monkey Business were inspired by Indian Culture. Thank you India for your vibrancy and contribution to the world."
AR Rahman also re-tweeted will.i.am's tweet and wrote: "The borders are blurring through art!"
Now watch the video of Action here:
will.i.am has previously sampled AR Rahman's song Urvashi Urvashi and Asha Bhosle's track Yeh Mera Dil in the 2014 song It's My Birthday. Another Black Eyed Peas song - Don't Phunk With My Heart - was inspired by Asha Bhosle's track Aye Naujawan Hai Sab Kuch Yaha.