Subh Sukh Chain

History

During the Indian independence movement, the song Vande Mataram was frequently sung at protest meetings. At the proclamation of the Provisional Government of Free India in Singapore in October 1943, Vande Mataram was sung by the crowd. Muslims were, however, not comfortable with the expressly Hindu metaphors used in the song, and disliked the anti-Muslim tenor of the book, Anandmath, in which it had been first published. The leaders of the INA in Singapore were aware of this problem, and hoped that Subhash Chandra Bose, the head of the INA and the Provisional Government, would settle it.Lakshmi Sahgal, an active INA member, favoured the selection of Jana Gana Mana, which was composed by Rabindranath Tagore and had been sung at sessions of the Indian National Congress. She arranged to have it sung at a women's meeting attended by Bose. Bose was taken by the song, which he thought was truly nationally representative. He did not, however, like the fact that the song was in Sanskritised Bengali or Hindi, and commissioned a free translation in Hindustani.^[2]

The translation, Subh sukh chain, was written by Capt. Abid Ali, and its score composed by Ram Singh Thakur.^[1]. It took Vande Mataram's place as the official national anthem of the Provisional Government, and was sung at all meetings, including at the final assembly before Bose's departure.^[3] Because it was prepared as aIt is sometimes considered a Hindi version of the national anthem of India, Jana Gana Mana, though its meaning varies from the latter and it is therefore not a true translation.

[edit]Roman Transliteration

The text of the anthem is as follows^[4] -

--First stanza--

Subh sukh chain ki barkha barse,

Bharat bhaag hai jaaga.

Punjab, Sindh, Gujarat, Maratha,

Dravid, Utkal, Banga,

Chanchal sagar, Vindh, Himaalay,

Neela Jamuna, Ganga.

Tere nit gun gaayen,

Tujh se jivan paayen,

Har tan paaye asha.

Suraj ban kar jag par chamke,

Bharat naam subhaga,

Jai ho, jai ho, jai ho,

Jai, jai, jai, jai ho.

--Second stanza--

Sab ke dil mein preet basaaey,

Teri meethi baani.

Har sube ke rahne waale,

Har mazhab ke praani,

Sab bhed aur farak mita ke,

Sab god mein teri aake,

Goondhe prem ki mala.

Suraj ban kar jag par chamke,

Bharat naam subhaga,

Jai ho, jai ho, jai ho,

Jai, jai, jai, jai ho.

--Third stanza--

Subh savere pankh pakheru,

Tere hi gun gayen,

Baas bhari bharpur hawaaen,

Jeevan men rut laayen,

Sab mil kar Hind pukare,

Jai Azad Hind ke nare.

Pyaara desh hamara.

Suraj ban kar jag par chamke,

Bharat naam subhaga,

Jai ho, jai ho, jai ho,

Jai, jai, jai, jai ho.

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