Udit Narayan is basking in a new wave of love as his 1997 chartbuster Duniya Haseeno Ka Mela is back in the spotlight. More than two decades after its release, the track (heard in the thriller Gupt) has become a viral sensation, after it was used in The Ba***ds Of Bollywood.

“Seeing this song come alive after so many years feels very special,” the playback singer tells us, adding, “I always believed there was something timeless about it. When I was recording it, there was so much energy in the studio, and I could feel this song would be special.”

The track’s newfound virality has been staggering. Days after the show dropped online on September 18, the original music video clocked over 5 million new views on YouTube, while streams surged across Spotify and even Instagram. Now, as he sees youngsters dancing to the number, Udit admits that his initial instincts about the song feel validated.

“I feel very happy when I see so many Reels being made on this song. People are enjoying it in their own way — it shows that good music never gets old,” he tells us.

The 69-year-old also points out that this isn’t an isolated case. “Songs like Mere Mehboob Mere Sanam (from Duplicate, 1998) and Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast (Mohra, 1994) are also popular again. I think it all comes down to melody. That’s what stays, across time and across generations of listeners,” he muses.

For Gupt’s director Rajiv Rai, the renewed popularity of Duniya Haseeno Ka Mela is less about nostalgia and more about creativity. “The credit for its success this time does not belong to me, but to Aryan (Khan, director of The Ba***ds Of Bollywood),” he says, adding, “Sometimes all it takes is the right moment and the right storyteller to bring it back.”

Rajiv, who helmed the Bobby Deol–Kajol starrer that the track is from, shares he doesn’t usually allow his music to be repurposed: “I generally don’t give my music away; I don’t like overusing. But, this time I didn’t blink an eyelid. Shah Rukh Khan has been gracious to me, so when he asked me [for the song], I said, ‘Whatever you want’. So happy it worked out.”