Beating Retreat ceremony held amid rain, Republic Day celebrations end

New Delhi:

Rain did not dampen the spirits of the Beating Retreat ceremony held at the historic Vijay Chowk on Sunday as Indian classical tunes played by bands of the armed forces marked the end of the Republic Day celebrations.

Foot-tapping music ushered in the celebrations with the arrival of President Draupadi Murmu. He was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh.

Prime Minister Modi was drenched when he came out of the shelter area after the ceremony was over.

For the first time, 3-D anamorphic projection was done on the façade of North Block and South Block.

29 Indian tunes were played by music bands of the Army, Navy, Air Force, State Police and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).

Not missing a step despite the wet ground, the band started playing the tune “Agniveer”, which was followed by “Almora”, “Kedar Nath”, “Sangam Door”, “Satpura Ki Rani”, “Bhagirathi” and “Konkan”. As seductive tunes started playing. beauty”.

The Air Force Band played “Aparejeya Arjun”, “Charkha”, “Vayu Shakti”, “Swadeshi” while the Navy Band played the catchy “Ekla Chalo Re”, “Hum Tayyar Hai”, and “Jai Bharti”.

The army band performed “Shanknaad”, “Sher-e-Jawan”, “Bhupal”, “Agrani Bharat”, “Young India”, “Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja”, “Drummers Call”, and “Aye Mere Watan Ke Log”. Instead ,

The event ended with the ever popular tune “Saare Jahan Se Accha”.

In a spectacular spectacle, the band playing their instruments with the lights on and then playing “Aye Mere Watan Ke Log”, with the same lights off, cast an ethereal spell over Vijay Chowk.

Officials said the drone show involving 3,500 indigenous drones was canceled due to inclement weather.

A senior official said, “The drone show could not take place due to bad weather. A lot of preparation was done for it.”

The Chief Moderator of the ceremony was Flight Lieutenant Limapokpam Roopchandra Singh. While the Army Band was led by Subedar Diggar Singh, the Navy and Air Force band commanders were M Anthony Raj and Warrant Officer Ashok Kumar respectively.

The conductor of the State Police and CAPF band was Assistant Sub-Inspector Prem Singh.

Bugle players led by Naib Subedar Santosh Kumar Pandey performed and pipe and drum band was played under the direction of Subedar Major Basavaraj Wagge.

The ceremony, which traces its origins to the early 1950s, was indigenously developed by Major Roberts of the Indian Army, a unique ceremony performed by a large-scale band.

Now, it has emerged as an event of national pride when the colors and standards are paraded.

“It is symbolic of the age-old military tradition when soldiers stop fighting, withdraw from the battlefield and return to camps at sunset,” a defense ministry statement said on Saturday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)