Aye Mere Watan ke Logon

On this day, the song ‘Aye mere watan ke logon’ was released, and it turns 58 today. It is a patriotic song written in Hindi by Kavi Pradeep, composed by C. Ramchandra and sung by Lata Mangeshkar.

The song is dedicated to the soldiers who died during the Sino-Indian war in 1962. The song was first performed by Lata Mangeshkar on Republic Day at the National Stadium in New Delhi, where President S. Radhakrishnan and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru were in attendance. It was said that the performance moved Nehru to tears. It thus comes as no surprise that the event was able to raise approximately two lakh rupees for the Army Welfare Fund.

The song is considered one of the foremost patriotic songs, along with the National Anthem itself. During the period when it was released, the song greatly lifted the morale of Indians, who felt enraged and deflated due to the Sino-Indian war. The song seemed to alleviate the pain of the war. It commemorates the sacrificial efforts of the armed forces. The war culminated in a loss for India in 1963, but undoubtedly the greatest loss was the loss of many human lives on both sides due to this tragic phenomenon called war.