The jokes about Aadhaar are as relentless as the official efforts to make it a part of everyone’s existence in India. Now, one more recognisable voice has been added to those poking fun.

Here is actor, director and writer Jayant Kripalani, best-known for his theatre performances as well as his roles in, among others, Khandaan, Ji Mantriji, and 3 Idiots, singing about the national ID system. His chosen form: the Baul music of Bengal, a form of mystical folk songs from the area.

Kripalani performed his song at a literature festival, describing it as “just a bit of fun at a poets’ conference in Calcutta” and apologising for his “tunelessness.”

The hook of the song states, “I’m a Baul singer and I know that I’m free, I don’t need an Aadhaar card to tell I am me.” Kripalani goes on to sing:

“They say they’ll close my bank account, oh I just have to laugh
What the hell are they going to do with one rupee and a half?
...
Without an Aadhaar card they say they’ll cut my telephone
For talking to the almighty who needs a dial tone.”