Bhubaneswar: Jeypore MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati has urged the Odisha Assembly to recommend a posthumous Padma Shri award for late Satya Narayan Adhikari, the composer and singer of the viral tribal song 'Chi Chi Chi Re Nani'.

Highlighting Adhikari’s significant role in popularizing tribal music in Koraput, Bahinipati said the Padma Shri honour would be a well-deserved recognition of his contributions.

"The song has amassed over 3 crore views on social media in the last month, reaching a global audience. Adhikari, who was also a lawyer, was instrumental in promoting Koraput’s tribal music and truly deserves this honour," he said.

Composed in 1991 and recorded in 1992, the song has seen a resurgence in popularity.

Adhikari, who passed away in 2012 at the age of 57, was an accredited artist of All India Radio, Jeypore.