Vande Mataram

Vande Mataram
Lyrics	Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, Anandamath (1882)
Music	Jadunath Bhattacharya (original) Hemanta Mukherjee (film version)
India's National Song	Jan 24, 1950
National Honour Act:	Aug 11, 2026

Vande Mātaram is an poem composed by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in the 1870s which became a rallying cry in the Indian independence movement. Regarded for its eloquent praise of the motherland, Bharat Mata, it blends patriotism with reverence for the cosmic Mother. It was set to music and became one of India's foremost patriotic songs. It was composed in Sanskrit but written in the Bengali script and was first published as a devotional poem of six stanzas in 1875 in Bangdarshan and then in 1882, in Chatterjee's novel Anandamath. The novel was set amid the Sannyasi Rebellion, an early anti-colonial uprising by Hindu ascetics against the East India Company’s rule in India and a famine that devastated Bengal in 1770.

Vande Mataram, as a song and slogan, became emblematic of Indian independence struggle. The British colonial government banned its public singing or recitation and after the novel Anandamath, with imprisonment as a penalty. People continued to sing it defiantly across India in processions, protest and jails. Many activists were imprisoned as a consequence. A number of Indian freedom fighters died while chanting 'Vande Mataram' during confrontations with the British colonial forces or at execution.

Vande Mataram is an enduring, sacred and uniquely powerful element of Bharat's heritage, far more than a mere song. The need to give prominence to the song’s full revolutionary and spiritual dimensions over political accommodation has stirred a debate in India.

On Aug 11, 2026 the President of India gave assent to Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Act, 2026 to accord Vande Mataram, India's national song, the same statutory status as the national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’. The Union government said it fulfiled the Constituent Assembly's 1950 decision that Vande Mataram should be honoured equally with the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana.

Lyrics

वन्दे मातरम् (Devanagari transliteration)	বন্দে মাতরম্ (Bengali original)	Sanskritised romanisation (ISO 15919)
वन्दे मातरम् सुजलां सुफलाम् मलयजशीतलाम् शस्यश्यामलाम् मातरम्। वन्दे मातरम्। शुभ्रज्योत्स्नापुलकितयामिनीम् फुल्लकुसुमितद्रुमदलशोभिनीम् सुहासिनीं सुमधुर भाषिणीम् सुखदां वरदां मातरम्॥ वन्दे मातरम्। सप्त-कोटि-कण्ठ-कल-कल-निनाद-कराले द्विसप्त-कोटि-भुजैर्धृत-खरकरवाले, अबला केन मा एत बले बहुबलधारिणीं नमामि तारिणीं रिपुदलवारिणीं मातरम्॥ वन्दे मातरम्। तुमि विद्या, तुमि धर्म तुमि हृदि, तुमि मर्म त्वम् हि प्राणा: शरीरे बाहुते तुमि मा शक्ति, हृदये तुमि मा भक्ति, तोमारई प्रतिमा गडी मन्दिरे-मन्दिरे॥ त्वम् हि दुर्गा दशप्रहरणधारिणी कमला कमलदलविहारिणी वाणी विद्यादायिनी, नमामि त्वाम् नमामि कमलाम् अमलां अतुलाम् सुजलां सुफलाम् मातरम्॥ वन्दे मातरम्। वन्दे मातरम् श्यामलाम् सरलाम् सुस्मिताम् भूषिताम् धरणीं भरणीं मातरम्॥	বন্দে মাতরম্ ৷ সুজলাং সুফলাং মলয়জশীতলাম্ শস্যশ্যামলাং মাতরম্ ! বন্দে মাতরম্ ৷ শুভ্রজ্যোৎস্না-পুলকিতযামিনীম্ ফুল্লকুসুমিত-দ্রুমদলশোভিনীম্, সুহাসিনীং সুমধুরভাষিণীম্ সুখদাং বরদাং মাতরম্ ৷৷ বন্দে মাতরম্ ৷ সপ্তকোটীকণ্ঠ-কলকল-নিনাদকরালে, দ্বিসপ্তকোটীভুজৈর্ধৃতখরকরবালে, অবলা কেন মা এত বলে ! বহুবলধারিণীং নমামি তারিণীং রিপুদলবারিণীং মাতরম্ ৷ বন্দে মাতরম্ ৷ তুমি বিদ্যা তুমি ধর্ম্ম তুমি হৃদি তুমি মর্ম্ম ত্বং হি প্রাণাঃ শরীরে ৷ বাহুতে তুমি মা শক্তি, হৃদয়ে তুমি মা ভক্তি, তোমারই প্রতিমা গড়ি মন্দিরে মন্দিরে ৷ ত্বং হি দুর্গা দশপ্রহরণধারিণী কমলা কমল-দলবিহারিণী বাণী বিদ্যাদায়িণী নমামি ত্বাং নমামি কমলাম্ অমলাং অতুলাম্, সুজলাং সুফলাং মাতরম্ বন্দে মাতরম্ শ্যামলাং সরলাং সুস্মিতাং ভূষিতাম্ ধরণীং ভরণীম্ মাতরম্ ৷ বন্দে মাতরম্ ৷	Vande Mātaram. Sujalāṃ suphalāṃ Malayajaśītalām Śasyaśyāmalāṃ Mātaram. Vande Mātaram. Śubhra-jyotsnā-pulakita-yāminīm Phullakusumita-drumadalaśobhinīm, Suhāsinīṃ sumadhurabhāṣiṇīm Sukhadāṃ varadāṃ Mātaram. Vande Mātaram. Saptakoṭīkanṭha-kala-kala-ninādakarāle Dvisaptakoṭībhujairdhṛtakharakaravāle, Abalā kena mā eta bale! Bahubaladhāriṇīṃ Namāmi tāriṇīṃ Ripudalavāriṇīṃ Mātaram. Vande Mātaram. Tumi vidyā tumi dharma Tumi hṛdi tumi marma Tvaṃ hi prāṇāḥ śarīre. Bāhute tumi mā śhakti, Hṛdaye tumi mā bhakti, Tomārai pratimā gaṛi mandire mandire. Tvaṃ hi Durgā daśapraharaṇadhārinī Kamalā kamala-dalavihāriṇī Vānī vidyādāyiṇī Namāmi tvaṃ Namāmi kamalām Amalāṃ atulām, Sujalāṃ suphalāṃ Mātaram Vande Mātaram. Vande Mātaram Śyāmalāṃ saralāṃ Susmitāṃ bhūṣitām Dharaṇīṃ bharanīm Mātaram.

Indian Independence Movement links to Vande Mataram:

'Vande Mataram' was one of foremost songs of protest during the Indian independence movement. The colonial government in response banned the book and made the recital of the song in public a crime. It imprisoned many independence activists for disobeying the order, but workers and general public repeatedly violated the ban many times by gathering together in the presence of colonial officials and singing it.

It first gained political significance when 'Vande Mataram' was recited by Rabindranath Tagore in 1896 at the Calcutta Congress Session held at Beadon Square.

By 1905, it had become popular amongst political activists and freedom fighters as a marching song. On May 20, 1906 in Barisal (now Bangladesh), more than ten thousand people, both Hindus and Muslims, marched together with Vande Mataram flags in a landmark nationalist procession.

In 1907, Bhikaiji Cama (1861–1936) created the first version of India's national flag (the Tiranga) in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1907. It had 'Vande Mataram' written on it in the middle band. Hiralal Sen made India's first political film in 1905 which ended with the chant.

Lala Lajpat Rai started a journal called 'Vande Mataram' from Lahore. Mahatma Gandhi supported adoption and the singing of the Vande Mataram song. In January 1946, in a speech given in Guwahati (Assam), he urged that "Jai Hind should not replace Vande-mataram". He reminded everyone present that Vande-Mataram was being sung since the inception of the Congress. He supported the "Jai Hind" greeting, but remanded that this greeting should not be to the exclusion of Vande Mataram. Gandhi was concerned that those who discarded Vande Mataram given the tradition of sacrifice behind it, one day would discard "Jai Hind" also.

The freedom struggle saw a number of fighters who raised the slogan or sang the song in their final moments.

To name a few, Matangini Hazra's last words as she was shot to death by the Crown police were 'Vande Mataram'. Hazra, who was 72 years at the time, led a procession of six thousand supporters, mostly women volunteers, to a police station. Even after the firing commenced, she continued to advance with the tri-colour flag, leaving all the volunteers behind. The police shot her three times. She continued marching despite wounds to the forehead and both hands. As she was repeatedly shot, she kept chanting Vande Mataram, 'Hail to the Motherland'. She died with the tricolour flag held high and still flying.

Surya Sen, the leader of the Chittagong Armoury Raid was executed in January 1934 in Chittagong jail. As he was being led to the gallows under heavy escort, he shuted 'Vande Mataram'. Other political prisoners in the jail responded by singing the song in chorus.

Savarkar had Madanlal Dhingra’s final statement published after the freedom fighter's execution. Dhingra's statement read 'My only prayer to God is may I be reborn of the same Mother, and may I re-die in the same sacred cause till the cause is successful, and she stands free for the good of humanity and to the glory of God - BANDE MATARAM.'

Adoption as the National Song of India:

On Oct 10, 1937, Nehru wrote to Subhas Chandra Bose, 'There is no doubt that the present outcry against Bande Mataram is to a large extent a manufactured one by the communalists. At the same time there does seem some substance in it and people who are communalistically inclined have been affected by it. Whatever we do cannot be to pander to communalists’ feelings but to meet real grievances where they exist.'

Bose asked for Tagore's views on Vande Mataram. Tagore opined that the hymn was to goddess Durga and that Bankim Chandra shows Durga to be inseparably united with Bengal. He believed Muslims could not be expected patriotically to worship Durga as 'Swadesh', our native land.

Thereafter in the Congress Working Committee session starting Oct 26, 1937, with the support of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, the decided to adopt only the first two stanzas as the national song to be sung at public gatherings, and other verses that included references to Durga were omitted.

In Apr 1938, Nehru wrote to Jinnah that, '...the Bande Mataram song has been intimately associated with Indian nationalism for more than thirty years and numerous associations of sentiment and sacrifice have gathered round it. Popular songs are not made to order, nor can they be successfully imposed. They grow out of public sentiment. During all these thirty or more years the Bande Mataram song was never considered as having any religious significance and was treated as a national song in praise of India. Nor, to my knowledge, was any objection taken to it except on political grounds by the government.'.

He bemaoned Jinnah's insistance that not even two stanzas of the song would be acceptable to the Muslim League saying, '... to compel large numbers of people to give up what they have long valued and grown attached to is to cause needless hurt to them and injure the national movement itself. It would be improper for a national organisation to do this.'

The truncation of Vande Mataram to two stanzas was a desperate attempt of the Congress Working Committee to win over the Muslim League to avoid partition. That attempt failed.

On Jan 24, 1950, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted Vande Mataram as the national song of the Republic of India. President of India Rajendra Prasad stated that the song should be honoured equally with the national anthem of India, "Jana Gana Mana". He stated, '...the song Vande Mataram, which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indian freedom, shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it. (Applause). I hope this will satisfy the Members.' The resolution did not specify that all six verses were to be sung nor did it indicate a trucated version.

On Feb 6, 2026, Ministry of Home Affairs issued guidelines for the rendition of Vande Mataram as part of commemorations marking the 150th anniversary of the national song. It fixed the official rendition time at 3 minutes and 10 seconds, instructed that all attendees must stand at attention while the song is being played, endorsed performing the full six-stanza version during formal government functions attended by the President or Governors, before and after presidential addresses broadcast on radio and television, when the National Flag is brought on parade, or other such occasions. The guidelines primarily apply to government institutions, official or state functions and public authorities. The guidelines do not create a personal obligation for the general public or ordinary individuals. Schools have been encouraged to begin the day with community singing of the National Song

In May 2026, the Union Cabinet approved a legislative amendment to include Vande Mataram under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, extending the legal protections previously reserved for the national anthem and national flag and establishing penal provisions for deliberate disrespect or disruption during its rendition.

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