My views | Nov 07, 2025
There have been many defining moments in our history when songs and art became thesoul of social and political movements. The war songs of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’sarmy, the patriotic anthems sung during the freedom struggle, or the songs ofresistance sung by the youth during the Emergency, songs have always awakened collectiveconsciousness and unity in Bharatiya society.
Among them stands ‘Vande Mataram’, Bharat’s national song. It did not emanate from a battlefieldbut in the calm yet resolute mind of a scholar, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay.In 1875, on the day of Jagaddhatri Puja (Kartik Shukla Navami or AkshayaNavami), he composed the eternal anthem of the nation’s freedom. He drewinspiration from Bharat’s deepest civilisational roots, from the Atharva Veda’sdeclaration “Mata bhumih putro aham prithivyah” (“The earth is my mother, and Iam her son”) to the Devi Mahatmya’s invocation of the Divine Mother.
Bankim babu’s words were both a prayer and a prophecy. It was Bankim Chandra’s firstproclamation of Cultural Nationalism. It reminded us that Bharat is not just ageographical territory, but a geo-cultural civilisation.
As Maharshi Aurobindo described, Bankim Babu was a sage of modern Bharat whoreawakened the soul of the nation through his words. His novel Anandamath wasalso a mantra in prose that stirred a sleeping nation to rediscover its divinestrength. In one of his letters, Bankim babu wrote, “I shall have no objectionif all my works are lost in the Ganga; this one hymn alone will live througheternity. It will be a great song and will win the hearts of the people.” Thesewords were prophetic. Only an individual brimming with devotion to themotherland could have written such lines.
Vande Mataram transcended barriers of language and region, echoing across Bharat. InTamil Nadu, Subramania Bharati rendered it in Tamil and in Punjab,revolutionaries sang it in defiance of British rule.
During the partition of Bengal in 1905, when rebellion swept across the province, theBritish banned public recitations of ‘Vande Mataram’. Yet on 14 April 1906, inBarisal, thousands defied the order. When the police charged upon the peacefulcrowd, men and women alike stood bleeding on the streets, shouting ‘VandeMataram’ in unison.
This sacred chant by the revolutionaries of the Ghadar Party in California, the Azad Hind Fauj and also the mutinyof the Royal Indian Navy mutiny in1946. From Khudiram Bose to Ashfaqulla Khan,from Chandrashekhar Azad to Tiruppur Kumaran, the slogan echoed as one. MahatmaGandhi himself admitted that ‘Vande Mataram’ had “the magical power to stireven the dullest blood.” It united liberals and revolutionaries, scholars andsoldiers alike. As Maharshi Aurobindo declared, it was “the mantra of Bharat’srebirth.”
On October 26, during his Mann Ki Baat address, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Jireminded the nation of Vande Mataram’s glorious legacy. To mark 150 years ofthis immortal hymn, the Government of India has decided to organise nationwideprograms for a year starting November 7. Through these celebrations, the fullversion of ‘Vande Mataram’ will resonate across the nation once again,inspiring the youth to internalise the idea of ‘Cultural Nationalism’.
As we celebrate Bharat Parv and pay homage to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on hisbirth anniversary, we are reminded of how Sardar’s unification of Bharat wasthe living embodiment of the spirit of ‘Vande Mataram’. This song is not merelya remembrance of the past but also a call to the future. Even today, VandeMataram inspires our vision of a Viksit Bharat 2047, a confident, self-reliantand resurgent Bharat.
‘Vande Mataram’ is the song of freedom, the spirit of unyielding resolve and the firstmantra of Bharat’s awakening. This sacred chant will continue to echo througheternity, reminding us to view our history, our culture, our values and ourtraditions through the vision of Bharatiyata (Indianness).
VandeMataram!
