‘Beating Retreat’ Ceremony 2022
1000 ‘Make in India’ drones enthral audience
Anovel drone show was one of the major attractions of this year’s ‘Beating Retreat’ ceremony, that was graced by President and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces Mr. Ram Nath Kovind, at the historic Vijay Chowk in the heart of New Delhi on 29 January 2022.
For the first time, the show had been made a part of the ceremony to commemorate 75 years of Independence, being celebrated as ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. Other dignitaries, including Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and Raksha Mantri Mr.
Rajnath Singh, witnessed the show, which was conceptualised, designed, produced and choreographed under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
Martial musical tunes with Indian fervour were flavour of the ceremony this year. A total of 26 performances enthralled the spectators with foot-tapping music played by the bands of Indian Army, Navy, Air Force and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF). The entry band was Massed Band playing the ‘Veer Sainik’ tune. This was followed by Pipes & Drums Band, CAPF Band, Air Force Band, Naval Band, Army Military Band and Massed Bands. The principal conductor of the ceremony was Commander Vijay Charles D’Cruz.
A number of new tunes were added to the ceremony to celebrate ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. These included ‘Kerala’, ‘Hind ki Sena’ and ‘Ae Mere WatanKe Logon’. The event closed with the ever-popular tune of ‘Sare Jahan se Acha’.
The drone show was organised by a startup ‘Botlab Dynamics’ and supported by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and Department of Science & Technology. The show was of 10 minutes duration involving around 1,000 drones fabricated through indigenous technology. Synchronised background music played during the drone show.
Another attraction was a projection mapping show to commemorate 75 years of independence. The show of around 3-4
minutes duration was showcased on the walls of North and South Block before the end of the ceremony.
Similar to the Republic Day Parade, eco-friendly invitation cards had been prepared for the ‘Beating Retreat’ ceremony relevant to the COVID-19 times. The cards were prepared with the seeds of medicinal plants of Ashwagandha, Aloe Vera and Amla embedded in it. People are being encouraged to plant it in their gardens/ flower pots and reap the age-old medicinal benefits.
‘Beating Retreat’ is a centuries-old military tradition dating from the days when troops disengaged from battle at sunset. As soon as the buglers sounded the retreat, the troops ceased fighting, sheathed their arms and withdrew from the battlefield. It is for this reason that the custom of standing still during the sounding of retreat has been retained to this day. Colours and standards are cased and flags lowered at retreats.
Drumbeats recall the days when troops, billeted in towns and cities, were recalled to their quarters at an appointed time in the evening. Based on these military traditions, ‘Beating Retreat’ ceremony creates a mood of nostalgia of the times gone by.