A musical potpourri was on offer on Friday evening at Beating Retreat ceremony that brings the curtain down on the annual Republic Day celebrations, but the jury’s out on whether it worked.
For instance, the individual elements of some of the compositions were brilliant in their own right but extremely out of place at what is essentially a military ceremony that dates back hundreds of years when opposing armies laid down their arms at sunset to regroup on the morrow.
Change has been constant at the ceremony over the last few decades, with western marches fading away to be replaced by Indian composition but never was the transition as drastic as this time around.
Two full-fledged Indian-style orchestras — complete with sitars, flutes and tablas, as also the western double bass — attempted to blend with bass brands for an output that didn’t gel most of the time.
There were, of course, exceptions as Taaqat Watan Ki Humse Hai burst on the scene midway through the hour-long ceremony interspersed with snatches of Vande Mataram and Ai Mere Watan Ke Logon that actually brought the house down.
Thankfully, certain things didn’t change and were restored to the originally. “Abide with me”, Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite hymn, brought the proceedings to an end before the Retreat was sounded, the tricolour lowered and the massed bands marched up Raisina Hill to the strains of Sare Jahan Se Aachha and thousands of light bulbs came alight on Rashtrapati Bhavan, the North and Blocks, the Parliament House complex and adjacent buildings to the regulation “oohs and aahs” from the spectators.
For the record, 20 of the 26 performances this year were by Indian composers. Fifteen Indian Army brass bands, 18 pipes and drums bands from various regimental centres and battalions participated in the ceremony, besides one band each from the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force.
The ceremony began with the arrival in state — in a coach and six — of President Pranab Mukherjee, who was welcomed by Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and other senior officials. The President departed in similar fashion at the conclusion of the ceremony.
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Ministers, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and a host of dignitaries were also present at the ceremony.
