Army May Play New Indigenous Song With Hindi Lyrics for ‘Solemn’ National Events

New Delhi: Surprisingly, the Indian Army has been playing audio tunes of British origin like ‘Auld Lang Syne.’ However, it may soon have a new audio score complete with Hindi lyrics to be played by military bands at the end of “solemn national ceremonial events” such as the Beating the Retreat ceremony.

The Army’s Additional Directorate General of Ceremonial Welfare invited bids for the new score in July this. Three private players responded, are currently being evaluated, News18.com reported.

There has been increased focus on Indian tunes played at ceremonies such as Beating the Retreat. Some new tunes, including ‘Swarnim Vijay’, were played this year during the Beating the Retreat ceremony, along with other band performances based on Indian tunes. Last year, there were plans to drop ‘Abide With Me’ in favour of ‘Vande Mataram’ as the closing tune of the ceremony. However, the former was eventually retained in both 2020 and 2021.

‘Abide With Me’, a Christian hymn, is traditionally played as the last tune at the Beating the Retreat ceremony on January 29 every year before the participating bands march off to the popular tune of ‘Saare Jahan Se Accha’.

The Army’s Request For Proposal (RFP) does not explicitly state if this new indigenous audio tune will replace ‘Abide With Me’ or any other military tune, or whether it will be added to the selection of tunes played at these ceremonies. What it does say is that the tune should be “sombre and suitable for playing as the final performance at the culmination of solemn national ceremonial events,” the report added.

The RFP says that the new song will be dedicated to the sacrifices of Indian soldiers who attained martyrdom and their kin. The lyrics, it states, must be “timeless, moving, spiritually/aesthetically appealing and should highlight the dedication of soldiers” despite the hardships faced by them. “The musical composition should be acoustically pleasing, foot-tappingAr, hummable and adaptable by military bands,” it states.

After a firm is shortlisted, the vendor will have to present the tune within 30 days of the finalisation of the contract for the first screening. The vendor should be ready with the final rendition along with lyrics and music scores of the composed song and tune within 45 days of the contract being finalised. As per the RFP, the song will be the intellectual property of the Government of India, News18 reported.