BANDE MATARAM: The Freedom Cry
In 1905, the British Government under Viceroy
Lord Curzon initiated the ‘partition of Bengal’ which became a major turning point in the Indian
independence movement. During the turbulent days of the anti-partition movement
in Bengal, the slogan ‘Bande Mataram’ also spelled as ‘Vande
Mataram’ became the ‘freedom-cry’
of national resurgence. Bande Mataram’s
appeal was instant. The amazing transformation of the slogan ‘Bande Mataram’ into a revolutionary ‘war cry’ was the work of the youth in
Bengal.
‘Bande Mataram’ was composed in 1876 by
Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838-1894).
In 1882 the song was included in his novel Ananda Math (Abode of Bliss).
In 1906, Bipin Chandra Pal (1858-1932) and Sri
Aurobindo Ghose (1872-1950)
adopted Bande Mataram as the name of
their English Weekly that was to serve as the organ of revolutionary nationalism
from Calcutta. In 1908, the ‘Bande
Mataram’ was forced to stop publication under the Newspapers Act of 1908.
It was also at this point of time, the need
to unite the whole of India became paramount and the question of invention of a distinctive pan-Indian National flag began
to be discussed in the press. One of the first serious attempts at
flag-making came from Sister Nivedita, an Irish disciple of Swami Vivekananda in 1904. Nivedita’s flag
was adorned by the symbol of the Vajra
placed in between the words ‘Bande’
and ‘Mataram’ in Bengali
with jyotis embroidered along the outer periphery.
The original flag made of pure silk is
preserved at Acharya Bhavan Museum, Bose Institute, Kolkata.
There were two other flags emblazoned
with the slogan ‘Bande Mataram’ ;
1)
The Calcutta Flag hoisted by Sir
S.N. Bannerji on the first anniversary of Boycott Day on 7 August 1906, and by
the Congress President Dadabhai Naoroji
at the Calcutta session of the Congress in December 1906. The flag was jointly designed by Sukumar Mitra and Sachindra Prasad Basu. The flag was made by Kumudini Basu, sister of Sukumar Mitra.
2) A - a variant of the
Calcutta flag popularly known as Madame
Bhikaji Rustom Cama’s flag; flown on 22 August 1907 at the Second International Socialist
Congress in Stuttgart, Germany.The flag was made by Hem Chandra Kanoongo (Das).
The song ‘Bande
Mataram’ was
set to music by Rabindranath Tagore who also sang it for the first time at the All India Congress session in Calcutta in
1896.
Hemendra Mohan Bose on his label,
‘H. Bose’s Record’ released commercially the song ‘Bande Mataram’ in Rabindranath Tagore’s own voice for the first
time in 1907.
Bande Mataram in Raga Durga; 78 rpm vinyl disc
record (12” dia)
It was Netaji Subhas Bose, Supreme Commander of the Azad Hind Fouz (INA) who asked Timir Baran Bhattacharya to set the song into a tune that could be used as a marching song. The song’s vinyl disc was released in 1938; it was broadcast from Singapore Radio during World War II in 1943.
There were numerous other rendering of the song by
various other singers.
A patriotic Bengali Movie “Bande Matarm” was released
in September 1946 in Calcutta, just a year before our Independence.
Booklet of the movie ‘Bande Mataram’, directed by
Sudhirbandhu Bandopaddhyay.
Advertisement
in The Hindusthan Standard, Calcutta, dated Friday, 15 August 1947. ("Bande Mataram" English translation by Sri Aurobindo).
“No
matter what its source was and how and when it was composed, it had become a
powerful battle cry among the Hindus and Muslims of Bengal during the partition
days. It was anti-imperialist cry….. It never occurred to me that it was a
Hindu song or it was meant only for the Hindus…. It is enthroned in the hearts
of millions. The flag and the song will live as long as the nation lives… ”.
Mahatma Gandhi in Harijan, 1 July 1939.
The song "Bande Mataram" which has played a historic role in the struggle for Indian freedom was given equal status with "Jana Gana Mana" while adopting the later as Indian National anthem by President Rajendra Prasad in the Constituent Assembly on 24 January 1950.
The greatest and most enduring gift of the Swadeshi
Movement was Bande Mataram, the
uncrowned National anthem”- The Cambridge History of India.
