Vijay Chowk to echo with Vande Mataram at Beating Retreat ceremony

The dominant theme at this year's ceremonial parade at the Kartavya Path, and other associated celebrations, has been the sesquicentenary of the national song, 'Vande Mataram'

Bands of the Indian armed forces and the paramilitary will play an array of lilting tunes and foot-tapping melodies, including Vande Mataram, Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja, Vijay Bharat, Sitare Hind and Brave Warrior, at the Beating Retreat ceremony in New Delhi on Thursday that will also celebrate 150 years of the national song.

The majestic ceremony traditionally marks the culmination of Republic Day celebrations every year.

This year, the seating enclosures at Vijay Chowk for the ceremony have been named after Indian instruments such as 'bansuri', 'damaru', 'ektara', 'esraj', 'mridangam', 'nagada', 'pakhawaj', 'santoor', 'sarangi', 'sarinda', 'sarod', 'shehnai', 'sitar', 'surbahar', 'tabla' and 'veena'.

The dominant theme at this year's ceremonial parade at the Kartavya Path, and other associated celebrations, has been the sesquicentenary of the national song, 'Vande Mataram.'

Invitation cards to the ceremonial parade carried the logo of the song's 150th anniversary, along with a silhouetted image of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and 'Vande Mataram' as a watermark. Invitation cards issued for the Beating Retreat ceremony also carry the logo and the commemorative images.

Also, performances by the military and the Central Armed Police Forces bands were held from January 19 to 26 in many cities, on the theme of 'Vande Mataram'.

The iconic Vijay Chowk is all set to reverberate with "captivating Indian tunes" during the Beating Retreat ceremony on January 29, marking the culmination of the 77th Republic Day celebrations, the defence ministry said on Tuesday.

The bands of the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, the Indian Air Force and the Central Armed Police Forces will play an array of foot-tapping melodies before a distinguished audience, comprising President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President C P Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, several Union Ministers, senior officials, and other invited guests.

The ceremony will begin with the massed band's Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja, followed by melodious tunes by the pipes and drums band, such as Atulya Bharat, Veer Sainik, Mili Jhuli, Nritya Sarita, Marooni, and Jhelum.

The Central Armed Police Forces bands will play Vijay Bharat, Hathrohi, Jai Ho and Veer Seepahi, it said in a statement. The tunes played by the band of the Indian Air Force will include Brave Warrior, Twilight, Alert, and Flying Star, while the Indian Navy band will play Namaste, Sagar Pawan, Matribhumi, Tejasvi, and Jai Bharati, it said.

"It will be followed by the band of the Indian Army playing 'Vijayee Bharat', 'Aarambh Hai, Prachand Hai', 'Aye Watan, Aye Watan', 'Anand Math', 'Sugamya Bharat', and 'Sitare Hind'," the ministry said. The massed bands will, then, play the tunes 'Bharat Ke Shaan', 'Vande Mataram' and 'Drummers Call'.

The event will come to a close with the ever-popular tune of 'Sare Jahan Se Acha' to be played by the Buglers, it added.

"The principal conductor of the ceremony will be Squadron Leader Leimapokpam Rupachandra Singh. The Indian Army Band conductor will be Subedar Major Prakash Joshi, while M Antony, MCPO MUS II and Warrant Officer Ashok Kumar will be the conductors of the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force bands respectively," the statement said.

The conductor of the Central Armed Police Forces band will be INSP Chetram. The pipes and drums band will play under the instructions of Subedar S P Chourasia, while the buglers will perform under the leadership of Subedar Manoj Kumar.