The year 2025 marks a defining milestone in India’s civilizational journey — 150 years of the national song Vande Mataram. Composed in 1875 by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, this song was far more than a literary creation. It was a weapon of words that sowed the seeds of Indian consciousness, identity, freedom, and nationhood. Vande Mataram was the anthem of awakening — a surge of faith that pierced through the darkness of colonial rule and kindled the dawn of independence.
In the long arc of India’s freedom struggle, there was scarcely a moment when the cry of Vande Mataram did not echo from the throats of revolutionaries, satyagrahis, reformers, and patriots ready to lay down their lives for the motherland.
Born in the political and social ferment of Bengal, the song soon became the voice of India’s soul. In 1882, through the novel Anandamath, it entered the public imagination as the spiritual core of national awakening. When Rabindranath Tagore first sang it publicly at the 1896 Calcutta Congress session, it became the hymn of unity. Then came the Partition of Bengal in 1905, which transformed Vande Mataram into a living emblem of national pride. From village squares to secret meetings of revolutionaries, one chant bound the nation — Vande Mataram!
It was this song that deified the motherland and infused the freedom movement with spiritual strength, emotional fire, and ideological direction. In 1950, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, India’s first President, accorded it the status of National Song — a fitting recognition of its timeless power.
I believe that no movement can succeed through arms alone. It needs conviction, thought, emotion, and character. Vande Mataram shattered the colonial mindset that glorified servitude and reminded Indians that they belonged to one of the world’s oldest civilizations — rich in culture, tradition, values, and unshakeable self-respect.
From its rhythm arose the courage of Veer Savarkar, the sacrifice of Chandrashekhar Azad, the rebellion of Bhagat Singh, and the nationalist vision of Subhas Chandra Bose. History bears witness — every word of Vande Mataram had the power to unsettle the British Empire.
Today, under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi, India strides confidently toward new horizons — self-reliance, technological leadership, global trust, cultural renaissance, and the pursuit of world peace.
In this era of Amrit Kaal, Vande Mataram assumes renewed significance. Modern India does not wish to merely celebrate its past glory, rather it aspires to shape the future. The song remains a moral compass for Indian democracy, reminding us that politics is not about power — it is about the primacy of the nation.
For Prime Minister Modi, every policy decision begins with one guiding belief — India first, the people of India first, and the spirit of India first. That, he says, must be the core direction of Indian democracy.
Over the past decade, the Prime Minister has redefined Vande Mataram as more than a cultural memory or a symbolic chant. He has placed it at the heart of modern nation-building, inspiring a new generation to embrace nationalism with confidence, dignity, and purpose. As India emerges as a global power, he has reaffirmed the country’s civilizational prestige at every world platform, evoking respect for the motherland, pride in identity, and the conviction that the nation always comes first.
As we mark 150 years of Vande Mataram, it is evident that the spirit of this song continues to animate the philosophy, confidence, and policy direction of a New India.
The next 25 years will be decisive in shaping India’s destiny. The journey to 2047 is not merely about becoming an economic powerhouse, but about nurturing collective character, social discipline, cultural resurgence, and deepening the roots of democracy. To achieve this, India needs a unifying national emotion that binds generations together and that spirit lies in Vande Mataram.
Vande Mataram does not merely connect us emotionally; it awakens our democratic responsibility. It reminds us that nationalism is not about division — it is about unity. It is this inclusive nationalism that makes India’s democracy the strongest, most vibrant, and most compassionate in the world.
Vande Mataram is not just a song; it is a salutation to Mother India. It is the eternal hymn of our Constitution, our culture, our freedom, our identity, and our shared national spirit.
As we mark 150 years of this immortal verse, we must remind future generations that no matter how far India advances, how fast technology evolves, or how vast globalization becomes — our soul, our identity, and our national axis will always remain rooted in the motherland.
There is nothing holier than the soil of India.
Vande Mataram.
— Nayab Singh Saini, Chief Minister of Haryana