Zomato and Paal Dabba Drop Chennai Anthem Celebrating City’s Heat and Hustle
CE DESK 
Zomato has launched a Chennai-specific anthem titled “Veppam is our Weapon” in collaboration with regional rap artist Paal Dabba, transforming the city’s notorious heat into a celebration of its distinctive culture, energy, and everyday resilience. The music video, released on August 21, 2026, serves as a tribute to Chennai’s ability to turn pressure both literal and metaphorical into fuel for perseverance.
The campaign anchors itself in Chennai’s relationship with heat, from its scorching summers to its famously spicy cuisine, using this as a metaphor for the city’s characteristic toughness and adaptability. The song’s visuals lean heavily into local references, language, and imagery that Chennai audiences immediately recognize from the cadence of Tamil slang to authentic street settings that capture the city’s rhythm.
Paal Dabba, who co-wrote and performed the track, emphasized the grassroots inspiration behind the anthem. “The inspiration came straight off Chennai’s streets. I wanted the track to carry that same heat and rhythm, so a lot of the references and even the slang are things I’ve grown up hearing. It’s less a song I wrote and more a song this city already had in it I just put it down on paper,” he stated. The creative process involved close collaboration between Zomato’s marketing team and Paal Dabba on both lyrics and visual treatment to ensure authenticity.
Sahibjeet Singh Sawhney, Marketing head, Zomato said “Heat is something every other city runs from, but Chennai runs on. Wherever, however, or whenever it shows up – in the weather, in its passions, or in its spices, Chennai embraces it. This year, we are collaborating with Paal Dabba to celebrate the unique relationship the city enjoys with heat. Chennai doesn’t just endure heat; it thrives on it – and this track is a celebration of that.”
The partnership marks Zomato’s continued investment in hyperlocal content strategies that resonate with regional audiences through culturally rooted storytelling.
