A music video on Argala stotram by singers from Hyderabad

The artistes in the music video
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

A team of singers well-versed in Carnatic music and playback singing in Telugu cinema have come together for a music video on Argala Stotram. The music video released on Thursday, in time for the Navaratri and Dussehra festivities, has been composed, directed and produced by singer ML Gayatri.

The music video is an attempt to highlight the devotional fervour of the Argala Stotram, based on the sacred scripture of Rishi Markandeya’s Chandi Sapthasathi. The project features an all-female cast — Chetana Raviraj, Valli Gayatri, ML Shruti and ML Gayatri.

Gayatri explains that Argala Stotram is divided into two categories, Durga Sapthasathi and Chandi Sapthasathi. For the music video, the team chose Chandi Sapthasathi. “We chose a special verse from Chandi Sapthasathi which is vibrantly used during Chandi yagam. The Argala Stotram is a 23-verse hymn from the Chandi Sapthasathi, which is part of the Markandeya Purana. The Chandi Sapthasathi consists of 700 verses dedicated to the goddess Durga/Chandi and her various forms. The Argala Stotram praises Her and seeks her blessings for protection, prosperity, and the removal of obstacles.” She adds that the Chandi Sapthasathi and Argala stotram are traditionally anonymous, meaning no single author is credited. However, they are ascribed to the sage Markandeya, as the text comes from the Markandeya Purana.