Chinese Pop Singer Croons in Sanskrit

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
BEIJING, CHINA, January 26, 2010: China’s official media is promoting what it describes as the first pop singer who sings in Sanskrit. She is one of the singers being considered to sign at the inauguration of the World Expo in Shanghai next May.

Sa Dingding, who won the BBC Radio 3 Award for World Music in the Asia Pacific category in 2008, is suddenly being promoted by the provincial government of Tibet. The provincial government has indicated it wants to reshape her image and get her to focus on Sanskrit singing. Sa, who graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts run by the People’s Liberation Army, sings in the language of Inner Mongolia, Tibetan and in Sanskrit.

Sa is not a Tibetan although she dresses in grandiose Tibetan clothing. The official site went on to say that “Her musical inspirations all come from Chinese civilization and culture.”