Has the time come to replace Vande Mataram as the National Song? While Parliament debates Vande Mataram, which many see as yet another distraction from real issues, I see it as a rare golden opportunity. An opportunity not just for Parliament, but for every citizen of this country to revisit the song’s deeper meaning and begin by asking the tough questions that our political leaders, our bureaucrats, and all those in power must finally answer.
1. If the motherland is sacred, why is her land, water, and forests being sold, mined, polluted, and destroyed with such impunity? 2. If patriotism is the message of Vande Mataram, why is corruption, and not duty or sacrifice, the operating system of governance today? 3. If we claim to honour the motherland, why do we treat political leaders like kings, allowing them to rule rather than serve in a democracy born out of a freedom struggle? Vande Mataram, penned by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in Anandamath (1882), was born from the author's vision of the motherland as a living force. Bankim did not see India as a mere stretch of land; he saw her rivers, mountains, fields, and forests as sacred, almost divine. When he invoked Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati, he was trying to show people how sacred India’s land was, something to be protected and revered, not exploited and destroyed. Which reminds me of some old NT Cybervoices discussions from long before Facebook or even Orkut had taken shape. There was a certain user with the pseudonym “Fire,” otherwise a fierce critic of the Sangh, who incidentally found nothing objectionable even in reciting the deleted stanzas. He argued that the deities invoked in "Vande Mataram" were never meant as literal goddesses but as metaphors for nature and cosmic forces based on ancient Vedic principles. In his view, singing the song was not an act of worship; it was an act of honouring nature itself. When we look back at the song’s history, the core purpose of the composition was to awaken patriotism, not the chest-thumping, rabble-rousing variety we see today. It called upon the people to demonstrate patriotism through responsibility, sacrifice, and duty. It spoke to their conscience, urging them to rise, act, and protect their land, not merely recite words for applause. Today, as we mark 150 years of this powerful composition, tough questions must be asked. Have any of our political parties truly honoured the spirit of Vande Mataram? As Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah lead heated discussions on the song in Parliament, is the focus really on its message, or is it yet another attempt to distract, deflect, and revive the routine blame game by invoking Nehru while sweeping everything else under the carpet? All one has to do is read the beautiful lyrics, understand their true meaning, and ask those who govern the relevant questions. The motherland described in Vande Mataram - with her cool breezes, flowing rivers, green fields, and majestic mountains - have they done justice to it? Or is it slowly being consumed by human greed? Bankim saw our land as our greatest wealth, our beauty, our identity - Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati, to quote his words. Are these resources being protected, or are they being ravaged? Forests are falling to reckless, unsustainable mining; beautiful streams and rivers are choking with sewage; hills are being cut open for rampant construction. Every stanza Bankim wrote celebrating nature is now being rewritten by bulldozers and illegal contracts. Ironically, many who cry the loudest while singing "Vande Mataram" are also the ones presiding over the slow destruction of the very mother they claim to worship. Why has corruption reached a stage where it has become the ruling culture? Illegal constructions are regularised. Public resources are handed over to corporate giants in deals that would put the old colonial companies to shame. If the motherland is sacred, then this unchecked exploitation is nothing less than sacrilege. The horrifying Arpora nightclub fire, which cost 25 innocent lives, is a direct product of this corruption. An illegal structure, a demolition order stayed, safety norms ignored, officials looking away- all ingredients of a manufactured tragedy. If we truly honoured the mother as invoked by Vande Mataram, such senseless deaths would never occur. As we celebrate 150 years of this national treasure, we must ask: Was Bankim’s dream simply to replace white sahabs with brown sahabs? Should citizens in a democracy treat political leaders like kings? Was Vande Mataram written to praise political leaders, or was it meant to inspire those who govern us to stand up for our motherland? I love the composition of Vande Mataram. It is a beautiful, soul-stirring piece, and I have many different versions of it. But when the very mother it praises continues to bleed in silence, the song begins to lose its true relevance. As Parliament debates Vande Mataram, it must also ask: in over 75 years of Independence, have we truly done justice to what it stands for? Time to think and reflect: Should we replace the Vande Mataram as our National Song, or rather the political culture that has betrayed every word of it? Until we repair the culture of corruption, greed, and selective patriotism, no national symbol will ever feel truly honoured. The song is not the problem, those who recite it without living by it are. Regards Sandeep Heble
