A dance challenge against social media onslaught

SFI unit at Cusat comes to the rescue of youngsters

Who would have thought that the effervescent and peppy number Rasputin by acclaimed Europe-based pop band Boney M would hold centre stage oceans apart here in the tiny State of Kerala, 41 years after it first had music lovers hooked. The less-than-a-minute-long dance by two students of the Thrissur Medical College — Janaki Omkumar and Naveen Razak — performed for fun to the tune of the global hit number from the 1978-album “Nightflight to Venus” has done just that. The jig that had since gone viral on social media has brought the youngsters both bouquets and brickbats inadvertently fanning communal and political passions. The controversy over the performance hogged media limelight after a lawyer made a Facebook post drawing attention to the religious background of the girl and the boy who hail from two different communities. This has sparked an impassioned debate on social media for and against the youngsters who have fended off the alleged communal barbs hurled at them.