New Delhi: The annual Beating the Retreat ceremony, which marks the end of India’s Republic Day celebrations, took place Wednesday.
The ceremony has its roots in a centuries-old tradition adopted by the British, marking the moment when troops disengaged from battle at sunset. The Indian ceremony traces its origins to the early 1950s when Major Roberts of the Indian Army developed the programme.
It has long been a favourite with the Indian public for its sharp military tunes, precise and interesting marching formations and the lights that come on at the end. Over the years, there has been a push to make the ceremony more Indian.
The event, held at Vijay Chowk, is presided over by the President of India, who is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. It sees bands of all three defence forces — Indian Army, Indian Navy and Indian Air Force — performing military and other music for an hour. Since 2016, bands of the Central Armed Police Forces and the Delhi Police have also been joining the ceremony.
At the end of the ceremony, as the bands retreat and march up Raisina Hill while playing Iqbal’s famous Saare Jahaan Se Achha, the entire area, including Rashtrapati Bhavan, North Block, South Block and Parliament are lit up. While for decades the lights used to be plain gold, the past few years have seen a change in the lighting system that now showcases the tricolour.
And this year, the bands played 26 songs, of which 25 were composed by Indian musicians. Abide with Me was the only foreign composition. Written by Scottish poet Henry Francis Lyte and composed by William Henry Monk, the hymn was a favourite of Mahatma Gandhi.
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The Abide with Me controversy
Earlier in January, it was reported that Abide with Me, which has traditionally been the last song played before the lowering of the national flag, was going to be excluded from the ceremony.
The song has been part of the Beating the Retreat ceremony since the Mysore Palace band was invited to perform in the Republic Day celebrations of 1950.
The reports of the song getting dropped led to outrage from several quarters, and the hymn was eventually included.
Other songs performed at this year’s ceremony included Ganga Jamuna, Ae Mere Pyaare Watan from Kabuliwala, Nritya Sarita, Abhiyan and the title song of Hrithik Roshan-starrer Lakshya, besides Madhumari, Marhapeka, Jauna Solti and Vijay Bharat.
But it’s not just this year. In 2019, out of the 27 songs performed, 19 were by Indian composers. The corresponding number was 25 of the 26 songs performed in 2018.
Narendra Modi’s first Beating the Retreat ceremony as Prime Minister in 2015 even saw the inclusion of sitar, santoor and tabla for the first time — a move that drew criticism as these are not military instruments. ThePrint has reported earlier that the change in the songs performed is part of a larger project of Indianisation of military music.
Earlier editions of the ceremony have seen a range of foreign compositions performed by the military bands. These included Fanfare by Buglers, Sound Barrier, Emblazoned, Twilight, Space Flight, Drummers Call, Pipers Cave, Highland Laddie, Sky Boat Song, The Marques of Huntley, Ocean’s Splendour and Nocturnal Cry.
The nationalisation of the ceremony has not gone down well with some quarters. In 2016, former Army vice-chief Vijay Oberoi called it an “absurd spectacle” and “tamasha”, and accused military heads of succumbing to political pressure.
In 2018, Major Nazir Hussain, who was the Adviser in Military Music to the Army headquarters from 1997-2004, expressed outrage at the inclusion of Bollywood songs at military functions. He said, “When you start trivialising military bands by mixing incompatible instruments and popular music and dance into their performances, you are changing a solemn official ceremony into a ‘Band, Baaja, Baraat’ type performance.”
Also read: Beating the Retreat — a musical military tradition celebrating the Republic for 7 decades
Not sure who is wrong, Indians playing their own songs or the British playing their own songs. Wondering if one can be wrong or both can be wrong for being nationalistic and using their cultural values? Someone is wrong here. Maybe The Print?
It’s “Beating Retreat” not “Beating the Retreat” 🙂
Yes, this government has reduced a solemn military occasion to a low-taste bhajan troupe event. It’s a soldier’s evening, not a sat-sangh. In its mindless obsession with everything Indian, the Modi team shows its shallow approach to things.