The ceremonial square was transformed into a tableau of national pride as bands from all services played beloved tunes that trace India’s cultural and military journey
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India’s Beating Retreat ceremony on Thursday evening brought the curtain down on the 77th Republic Day celebrations with a stirring display of patriotic music and military pageantry at Vijay Chowk, celebrating the nation’s valour, the success of Operation Sindoor and the 150th anniversary of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’.
Presided over by President Droupadi Murmu, the event featured brass and pipe bands from the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force and paramilitary forces performing a wide array of compositions ranging from martial classics such as ‘Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja’ and ‘Brave Warrior’ to ‘Jai Ho’ and ‘Vande Mataram’. Dignitaries including Vice President C.P. Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and the Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan were among those in attendance.
This year’s ceremony wove together musical tribute and symbolic formations. Bands stood in formations representing major national themes and achievements, including Operation Sindoor (the military action launched last May), space mission Gaganyaan, the tri?services’ logo, and the newly?raised Bhairav Battalion, which made its Republic Day parade debut. Patriotic motifs also celebrated the Indian women’s cricket team’s recent triumph.
Giant LED screens projected live visuals and graphics of military assets such as Rafale, Tejas and BrahMos systems, while musicians formed battlefield shapes like the ancient Ardhachandra Vyuha and Garuda Vyuha, linking India’s historical martial ethos with contemporary defence prowess.
The ceremonial square was transformed into a tableau of national pride as bands from all services played beloved tunes that trace India’s cultural and military journey. The Navy band’s performance included songs like ‘Sagar Pawan’ and ‘Maa Tujhe Salam’, with formations in Hindi numerals spelling out ‘150’ followed by ‘Vande’ and ‘Mataram’ to honour the sesquicentenary of the national song.
In a departure from tradition, seating enclosures around Vijay Chowk were named after Indian musical instruments such as sitar, tabla, sarod and shehnai, reflecting a conscious blend of cultural heritage with martial pageantry.
As dusk fell, the Air Force band’s tribute to Operation Sindoor and the Army’s powerful musical renditions filled the ceremonial arena with resonant pride. The ceremony concluded with a rendition of ‘Sare Jehan Se Achha’, and the symbolic retreat call sounded by buglers atop Raisina Hill.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took to social media to praise the performances, describing the Air Force, Navy and CAPF bands as “exceptional” and saying the tribute to Vande Mataram at this critical commemorative moment was “particularly special.”
The Beating Retreat ceremony remains one of India’s most evocative post?Republic Day traditions, blending military precision with cultural resonance and reaffirming the country’s spirit of unity, heritage and defence pride.