Dot.

Before watching the music video under scrutiny, we knew nothing about Aditi Dot, the teenage Indian singer who became quite a sensation after uploading a video of her performing a song that she wrote and composed. The first reaction upon hearing the music is one relating to contrast, specifically the contrast between the kind of tune you expect to hear when you read the title ‘Everybody dances to techno’, and what you actually hear. We won’t spoil what that is, it’s much better to see for yourself..

Directed by Prateek Sethi, the music video for Dot’s song, which clocks in at around two minutes and a half, is certainly a very original and intriguing creation that perfectly compliments the sweet and melodious tune. The visual style and colour palette create a harmonious melange that feels completely integrated in the experience of the music. It does not only confer added value to the melodic line, but also resonates with the lyrics and the deeper meanings behind them – the attention to detail and use of subtle symbolism works very much to the project’s advantage, as each medium becomes a potent facilitator for the others.

The imagery that accompanies the song by Aditi Dot quite often follows a path towards absurdism, but once again, this is not characterised by randomness, but by a certain order of thought and meaning. Aspects such as newspapers excerpt-shaped clouds and a giraffe sitting on top of a sunken shipwreck, with snorkelling gear on may at first seem completely nonsensical, but as the visual style as a whole leaves its mark on the audience, the underlying symbolism will be easier to decipher. This music video might not be fine-tuned to everybody’s taste, but we find it incredibly hard, if not impossible not to love at least one aspect about it. Whether it is simply Aditi Dot’s voice, the beautiful lyrics or the special visual companion of the song, ‘Everybody dances to techno’ can be easily categorised as a success.