150 Years of Vande Mataram: PM Modi inaugurated the year-long commemoration of 150 years of India’s national song, “Vande Mataram” at the Indira Gandhi indoor stadium today. He also released the commemorative stamp and coin on the occassion. Speaking on the occasion, the PM said Vande Mataram boosts the nation’s self-confidence and will continue to inspire generations to come.
The programme marked the formal launch of the year-long nationwide commemoration— from November 7, 2025 to November 7, 2026— celebrating 150 years of the timeless composition that inspired India’s freedom movement and continues to evoke national pride and unity.
वन्देमातरम् के 150 वर्षों की स्मृति में विशेष डाक टिकट और स्मारक सिक्का जारी कर गौरवान्वित हूं। pic.twitter.com/nYBRGcFS1W
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 7, 2025
150 Years of Vande Mataram: What did PM Modi say on Vande Mataram?
150 Years of Vande Mataram: PM Modi remembers Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
वन्देमातरम् की पूरी रचना में बंकिम बाबू के एक-एक शब्द और उसके भाव के अपने गहरे निहितार्थ हैं। इसीलिए यह हर दौर और हर कालखंड में प्रासंगिक है। pic.twitter.com/3EALDsyQn2
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 7, 2025
The event formally launched a year-long nationwide celebration, which will continue until November 7, 2026, to mark the 150th anniversary of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s timeless composition. This song, which inspired India’s freedom struggle, continues to inspire national pride and unity even today.
150 Years of Vande Mataram: PM Modi also remembered those who sacrificed their lives
The Prime Minister also paid tribute to those who sacrificed their lives for the country. He said, “I salute all those who sacrificed their lives for our motherland. I also congratulate all my countrymen. Every patriotic song has its own sentiment and message, but the central expression of Vande Mataram is ‘Bharat’ and ‘Maa Bharati.’”
150 Years of Vande Mataram: Celebrations included mass singing of the full version of Vande Mataram
The celebrations included the mass singing of the full version of Vande Mataram at public places across the country at around 9.50 am, with enthusiastic participation from citizens and synchronized with the main event in Delhi. The year 2025 marks the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram. The national song was composed on November 7, 1875, on the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Navami. It was first published in the literary magazine Bangadarshan as an excerpt from Bankim Chandra Chatterjee‘s famous novel Anandamath.
वन्देमातरम् के सामूहिक गान के हर स्वर में राष्ट्रभक्ति, एकता और समर्पण की अद्भुत गूंज सुनाई दे रही थी। इस प्रस्तुति ने हर किसी को एक बार फिर यह अनुभव कराया कि वंदेमातरम् केवल एक गीत नहीं, बल्कि भारत की आत्मा की अभिव्यक्ति है। pic.twitter.com/edq7j6sBAa
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 7, 2025
150 Years of Vande Mataram: Historical Background Of Vande Mataram
To comprehend the importance of Vande Mataram, it is imperative to examine its historical origins, a path that connects literature, nationalism, and India’s fight for independence. The development of the hymn from a poetic composition to a national song exemplifies India’s collective awakening against colonial dominance.
- The song was first published in 1875. This is corroborated by a passage in the English daily Bande Mataram written by Sri Aurobindo on 16 April 1907, that it was thirty-two years ago that Bankim composed his renowned song. He further observed that few listened at that time, but during a moment of awakening from long delusions, the people of Bengal looked around for truth, and in a fated moment, someone sang “Bande Mataram.”
- Prior to its publication in book form, Anand Math was serialised in the Bengali monthly magazine Bangadarshan, of which Bankim was the founder editor.
- The song “Vande Mataram” appeared in the very first instalment of the serialisation of the novel in the March-April 1881 issue.
- In 1907, Madam Bhikaji Cama raised the tricolour flag for the first-time outside India in Stuttgart, Berlin. The words Vande Mataram were written on the flag.
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