Anatomy of 'Khela Hobe': When a political slogan becomes a cross-cultural phenomenon

Illustration: TBS

"Whom are you teaching the game? We have been players since childhood. Khela hobe (The game is on)!" said Shamim Osman, a Bangladesh Awami League politician and a member of parliament from Narayanganj. 

It has been nearly a decade since Osman said "Khela Hobe" during an electoral campaign ahead of the country's 10th general election in 2013.  

But little did anyone know at the time that his words would not only find their way into the country's urban folklore but also transcend borders, languages and cultures to become one of the most famous Bangladeshi pop-culture references ever. 

Courtesy of Facebook and other social media platforms, "Khela Hobe" soon became an extremely popular one-liner or meme material in Bangladesh, used either to challenge someone at something or simply make light of a situation. 

Nine years later in 2022,  the general secretary of Bangladesh Awami League, Obaidul Quader also used this as a slogan right at the national parliament, and upon facing criticism for using it by some of the opposition leaders, he termed it as a "political humour."

But surprisingly, "Khela Hobe" did not remain confined within Bangladesh. Once again, thanks to social media, the people of West Bengal too made this slogan one of their own. 

And this phenomenon found a strong footing when West Bengal's ruling party Trinamool Congress (TMC) made "Khela Hobe" their unofficial electoral slogan ahead of the Legislative Assembly Election in 2021. 

During that time, one particular DJ song titled "Khela Hobe" became immensely popular in West Bengal, eclipsing even the best of the best Tollywood and Bollywood chartbusters. After winning the election, even the TMC leaders also danced to the tune of "Khela Hobe."

After that, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that they would observe "Khela Hobe Dibas" on 16 August to promote sports across West Bengal. Since then, two "Khela Hobe Dibas" have been observed so far. Besides that, Banerjee also introduced the "Khela Hobe Project" in West Bengal, granting RS 5 lakh each to 25,000 sporting clubs. 

In recent times, the "Khela Hobe" slogan has also been used by TMC's opposition party BJP as a form of counterattack, while its popularity soared in Assam as well.  

Beyond the 'politics' realms, "Khela Hobe" has also been dominating the entertainment industry for a while now. There have already been several single dramas titled "Khela Hobe" made in Bangladesh and are now available on YouTube. 

Apart from that, there was an item song titled "Khela Hobe" in a recent Bangladeshi movie "Local," starring Bubly and Ador Azad, while another title song of the same name in the Raj Chakraborty-directorial "Abar Proloy" is awaiting its release, where Nusraat Faria will be seen performing. 

"Mohanagar 2", one of the most celebrated web series of both Bangladesh and West Bengal this year, also ended with actor Anirban Bhattacharya uttering the words "Khela Hobe" – teasing the possibility of a character loosely based on Shamim Osman in the upcoming season. 

Interestingly, "Khela Hobe" has also caught the imagination of Bollywood, one of the world's biggest film industries. 

Earlier this year on 24 February, a Hindi-language film starring the late Om Puri and Mugdha Godse, and directed by Sunil C Sinha was released, with its title being "Khela Hobe." However, the movie garnered a lukewarm response. 

And most recently, on 4 July, the trailer for Karan Johar's upcoming movie "Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani" has been released. The teaser shows the female lead, Alia Bhatt, saying the words "Khela Hobe" – which has caused considerable buzz on the internet. 

Alongside Alia, the film stars an ensemble cast including Ranveer Singh, Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi.

And given the worldwide appeal of Bollywood films, it's safe to say that after conquering both Bangladesh and India, Shamim Osman's magnum opus is now all set to go global as well.