Welcome song to depict Bangladesh's history in WC opening

"Hey the world, now is the time to know Bangladesh" -- the mesmerising 'welcome song' is expected to set the stand on fire.

The welcome song is the inaugural item of the grand gala opening ceremony of the first ever World Cup Cricket, which kicks off on February 17, and it will depict the history of Bangladesh at Bangabandhu National Stadium in the capital, reports BSS.

This will be followed by the official 'theme song' -'De Ghumma Ke" to be sung in four languages.

The welcome song begins with "O Prithibi. Ebar eshey Banglake nao chiney.. O prithibi,. Ebar eshey Banglake nao chiney. (Hey the world. now is the time to know Bangladesh.).

The 5.40-minute-long 'welcome song' written by Zulfiqar Russell will be directed by famous music director and singer Ebrar Tipu. It is not yet finalised who will sing the song in Bangla but it is expected to be presented by Habib or Hridoy Khan while the English version will be sung by Mila and Elita.

The song is superbly composed asking the world that this is the time to know Bangladesh, its culture and heritage. Then the song depicts the 23-year arduous movement led by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman starting from 1952 Language Movement to War of Liberation in 1971.

In the concluding part, the song urges the visitors to come and witness the beauty of Bangladesh and its chanting mangrove forest and world famous sprawling coastline and people's mad desire to win.

Talking to the agency, music director Ebrar Tipu said, "Since the wording of the welcome song is about Bangladesh I have selected local music and instruments to complete this song."

"The music will include all local instruments starting from dotara to shehnai while the song will be composed with the mingling of classical, folk and modern tunes."

Bollywood's famous team of music directors Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy has composed the official theme song of World Cup 2011. They have composed the three versions of the song titled 'De Ghumaa Ke' in Bangla, Hindi and Sinhalese. The tournament, which will start on February 19, will be held in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

The theme song 'De Ghumaa Ke' is a very passionate number aimed to create the fierce sense of competition and the strong desire to win. The term literally means 'Hit It Hard' and it is one word used by all the cricket fanatics for their favourite player and team.