The hit song “Hare Hare, Hare Krishna” entered its 1,974th week in the Number One position on the Hare Krishna Top 40 this week, setting a record that the Hare Krishna Musical Association (HKMA) says may never be beaten. “When we first started this chart more than thirty years ago, ‘Hare Hare’ was number one with a bullet,” says Hare Krishna and self-confessed “Hare Hare” fan Rahul Thiamangeran. “Since then, it’s gone on to become the most successful number one single in Hare Krishna chart history. In fact it’s been the only number one single in Hare Krishna chart history.”

The iconic track has already received a bevy of honours, including three This Lifetime Achievement Awards and the International Centre for Krishna Consciousness’s highest accolade, a collection of SMILE stickers in every colour. It was also chosen as the theme song to the hit-motion picture Hare Krishna: The Jagannatha Krishna Story “It’s become a bit of anthem for Hare Krishnas,” says Thiamangeran. “For whatever reason, it’s struck a real chord with them. Did you know, for example, that it’s the song most covered by Hare Krishna recording artists? And it’s a favourite with buskers too.”

But not everyone is in love with it. “Like anything this popular, people tend to have a love-hate relationship with the song,” says Thiamangeran. “Hare Krishnas love it and everyone else hates it.”