Republic Day 2026: Culture Ministry tableau celebrates legacy of 'Vande Mataram', offers ode to India's spirit

New Delhi: The Culture Ministry's tableau for this year's Republic Day parade on the Kartavya Path here celebrated 150 years of 'Vande Mataram', showcasing the song's composition by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, a colonial-era recording by a famous Marathi singer and its rendition by a group representing the 'Gen Z'.

Themed 'Vande Mataram: The Soul-Cry of a Nation', the tableau's foreground section depicted the manuscript of 'Vande Mataram' being composed, while a panel on its lower side depicted an image of Chatterjee.

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The middle section carried a group of artists in traditional costumes, depicting the folk diversity of India, while some were seen in modern dresses, representing the 'Gen Z'.

Behind them, a series of art installations showcased celebrated actor and musician of Marathi cinema and theatre, Vishnupant Pagnis, recording the song, freedom fighters facing the gallows, and an imposing image of 'Bharat Mata' (Mother India) holding the Tricolour.

The depiction is of the rare 1928 recording of the song by him, an official said.

This recording by Pagnis "stands as perhaps the boldest rendition of Vande Mataram," according to the official portal that was launched last year, marking the sesquicentenary of 'Vande Mataram'.

"When only the first two stanzas of the song were permitted for public performance, Pagnis defiantly reversed the order -- singing the last two stanzas first, followed by the first two. Composed in Raga Sarang, this version was labelled 'Rashtrageet,' marking a courageous artistic response to controversy surrounding India's national song," it says.

Recordings of 'Vande Mataram' from the original 1905 version to the 1935-era rendition are also available on this commemorative website.

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The sesquicentenary of 'Vande Mataram' is the dominant theme of the 77th Republic Day Parade, with enclosure backdrops along the Kartavya Path displaying prints of old paintings (published in a volume in 1923) by artist Tejendra Kumar Mitra, illustrating the opening stanzas of the national song, and floral artworks at the main stage paying homage to Chatterjee, who composed it in 1875.

A long lower side panel depicted images of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, freedom fighter and philosopher Sri Aurobindo (Aurobindo Ghosh), who had done a translation in prose of the poem in the early 20th century, and the famed triumvirate of anti-colonial nationalists -- 'Lal Bal Pal' (Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and Bipin Chandra Pal).

'Vande Mataram', a rallying cry during the freedom movement, was adopted as India's National Song by the Constituent Assembly in 1950. India turned a Republic on January 26, 1950, when the Constitution, adopted on November 26, 1949, came into effect.

"This tableau will be an ode to 'Mother India', the enduring spirit of 'Vande Mataram', and its journey of 150 years. And, for us, the song means in totality with all its stanzas, and not just a few lines," a senior official earlier said.

The idea is to make the 'Gen Z' connect with the 150-year-old legacy of 'Vande Mataram' in the barely 45-second time that a tableau gets in front of the saluting dais during the parade, the official said.

'Vande Mataram' was initially composed independently and later included in Chatterjee's novel 'Anandamath'. It was first sung by Rabindranath Tagore at the 1896 Congress Session in Calcutta (now Kolkata).

The chant 'Vande Mataram' as a political slogan was first used on August 7, 1905, according to a note '150 Years of Vande Mataram: A Melody That Became a Movement', shared by the government on November 6 last year.

'Vande Mataram' was first published in the literary journal 'Bangadarshan' on November 7, 1875. Later, Chatterjee incorporated the hymn in his novel 'Anandamath', which was published in 1882. It was set to music by Tagore, it said.

It has become an integral part of the nation's civilisational, political and cultural consciousness. Commemorating this milestone presents an occasion to reaffirm the timeless message of unity, sacrifice, and devotion that 'Vande Mataram' embodies for all Indians, the note said.

Videos on 'Vande Mataram' were played on a screen at Kartavya Path.