Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday lauded Germany's Cassandra Mae Spittmann for her “soulful” rendition of Mahatma Gandhi's favourite bhajan — ‘Vaishnava Jana To’ — on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, Modi shared a video posted by Spittmann on Instagram and said, “Gandhi Ji’s thoughts strike a chord with people all around the world!”
On his last month's Mann ki Baat radio show too, Modi appreciated Spittmann for her passion for Indian music and culture. In his address to the nation, Modi said, “Indian culture and Indian music are now global. More and more people worldwide are getting attracted to them.” He played an Indian song sung by Spittmann.
Sharing Spittman's rendition on X, Modi said, “Do hear this soulful rendition of ‘Vaishnava Jana To’ sung by CassMae, whom I had recently mentioned during #MannKiBaat. She has shared it on her Instagram page.”
Sharing the video on Sunday, Spittmann wrote, “Tomorrow is Gandhi Jayanti and I practiced Gandhijis favorite Bhajan so much to get the notes and lyrics right.”
Celebrated on October 2 every year, Gandhi Jayanti marks the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The day is also celebrated as the International Day of non-violence to honour Mahatma Gandhi's values of non-violence and tolerance that he preached. This is the 154th Gandhi Jayanti.
{{/usCountry}}Celebrated on October 2 every year, Gandhi Jayanti marks the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The day is also celebrated as the International Day of non-violence to honour Mahatma Gandhi's values of non-violence and tolerance that he preached. This is the 154th Gandhi Jayanti.
{{/usCountry}}President Droupadi Murmu, Modi, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat.
PM Modi praises Cassandra Mae Spittmann on Mann ki Baat show
Playing a song by Spittmann on the Mann ki Baat show, Modi said, “Such a melodious voice...and every word reflects emotions. We can also feel her attachment to God. You would be surprised to know that this voice is of a daughter from Germany. Her name is CassMae. 21-year-old Cassmae on Instagram is quite famous these days. German national Cassmae has never visited India. But, she is extremely fond of Indian music.”
He added, “Such interest of someone who has never visited India, is inspiring. Cassmae is visually impaired since birth. But this challenge could not stop her from achieving this extraordinary...her passion for music and creativity was such that she started singing in childhood itself.”
Modi added that Spittmann was introduced to music around five to six years ago and since she was fascinated by Indian music, she got “completely engrossed” by it. She also learnt how to play table.
Modi also said in his national address that Spittmann sang Indian music not just in Hindu but several Indian languages. He said, “The most inspiring thing is that she has mastered singing in many Indian languages...Sanskrit, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada or Assamese, Bengali, Marathi, Urdu...she has sung in all of them.”