'Chalre Chalre Waal': how Shanzy Sial's Saraiki folk cover went viral in India

If your Instagram feed has been full of a soft Saraiki melody lately, you are not alone. “Chalre Chalre Waal” has become one of the most shared songs across the border this month, and it started in south Punjab.

The cover that started it

Pakistani singers Shanzy Sial and Mohsin Lashari recorded a simple acoustic version of the traditional Saraiki folk song. According to The Express Tribune and Gulf News, it has drawn millions of views on Instagram and YouTube, and the Instagram reel has reportedly passed 10 million likes.

The song, also known as Tediyan Reesan Kon Kare, has been sung by many folk singers over the years. Muhammad Hussain Bandialvi is the name most widely associated with it.

Why India fell for it

The biggest surprise is where it went viral: Indian Punjab and beyond.

• Indian Punjabi singer Sunanda Sharma shared her own version.
• Nishant Mishra, a sub-inspector with the Uttar Pradesh Police, went viral singing it with a guitar. His caption: “A reminder that music has no boundaries, no language barriers, and no borders. It connects hearts!”
• Listeners have also been comparing the melody with “Na Kajre Ki Dhar” from the 1994 Bollywood film Mohra, which has sparked its own online debate. Gulf News reports the comparison but does not say the two songs are the same.

Saraiki having a moment

Saraiki, spoken across southern Punjab and nearby areas, rarely gets this kind of national, let alone international, attention. This month shows how far a song in a regional language can travel.

Shanzy Sial has kept the momentum going: 24 News HD reports she has since released a new take on Noor Jehan’s “Mahi Ve Menu” with an AI-made music video.

Listen for yourself

The original reel is below. If you have been humming it all week, now you know where it came from.