Beating Retreat 2016: Inexcusable Indiscretion or Commendable Ingenuity

Beating Retreat 2016: Inexcusable Indiscretion or Commendable Ingenuity  

Major General Mrinal Suman

The ceremony of beating retreat at Vijay Chowk marks the end of Republic Day celebrations every year. Yes, ‘beating retreat’ is the correct taxonomy. It is wrongly called as ‘beating the retreat’ or ‘beating of the retreat’.

Beating Retreat 2016 has evoked conflicting response. Purists decry the changes. They consider them to be an unpardonable act of sacrilege and a deplorable dilution of military traditions. On the other hand, non-conventionalists view the alterations as a bold act of innovative creativity. For them, the new format is a praiseworthy attempt to contemporise a traditional military ceremony by blending it with India’s rich musical heritage. Both sides are entitled to their opinion and have valid reasons for their respective viewpoints.

Beating retreat is undoubtedly a military ceremony and owes its origin to the English practice of calling back all soldiers and citizens to the safety of the citadels/forts/fortifications before the night set in. Initially, calls were made by the drummers. Later, buglers joined them for wider area coverage. Over a period of time, the practice lost its battlefield relevance and got converted into a ceremonial event with massed band display.

Being a British legacy, many countries of the erstwhile British Empire continued with the ceremony even after gaining independence. However, most have moved away from the original format: marching of bands is accompanied by firing of cannons, fireworks, eye-catching props and cultural presentations with background music. In many countries, the ceremony has already got transformed into a military concert or a pageant. In Britain, the occasion is used to raise money for the Army Benevolent Fund. India is perhaps the only country that is still sticking to the traditional form.

Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi has been scathing in his censure of the new format. The title of his letter to the Chiefs (Sirs, I am Disillusioned and Devastated) shows the intensity of his pain at what he terms as ‘tamasha’. Gen Oberoi is a very well respected veteran and his views command immense respect. He has always chosen his words carefully. However, in this case, I beg to differ with him. I think he has been rather unfair in his criticism. He has denigrated the three Chiefs in unduly harsh words and castigated them for succumbing to the pressure of the political masters.

He has faulted the new version on three counts: playing of symphonies (both western and Indian); inclusion of police bands in a purely military ceremony; and excessive swaying by some bandsmen. Let us look at all the three issues.

One, how does the inclusion of a few symphonies eclipse the martial music? The ceremony retained its military spirit, lucidity and precision. As a matter of fact, inclusion of Indian instruments was a matter of national pride. It was a brilliant step. Strangely, while our ex-colonial masters have long abandoned the old format, our old mindset prevents us from giving it an Indian flavour. Scottish bagpipes are acceptable but not Indian musical instruments.

One is reminded of the stiff opposition put up by a section of the military when the government decided to change the words of command to Hindi. They scoffed at the replacement of ‘Attention’ by ‘Savdhan’ and so on. Numerous jokes were concocted to ridicule the Hindi terms. Perhaps, centuries of enslavement makes countries wary of weaning themselves away from the old practices. They tend to take pride in aping the old masters and shun the indigenous traditions.

Two, one wonders as to how the inclusion of police bands dilutes the military character of the ceremony? It was a Republic Day function and not an Army Day show. Police forces are an integral and vital part of the national security apparatus. They do not have an adversarial relationship with the military. By including them in the ceremony, the army is helping them imbibe military values. In any case, the overall command and control of the ceremony remained totally in military hands.

Three, excessive swaying may be out of place but it certainly does not deserve condemnation. At times, performers get carried away with the gusto of the occasion and tend to execute exaggerated movements. To assign them the motive of ‘trying to impress their Chief’ is rather unfair.

India has a rich legacy of martial music. We possess a wide variety of percussion and wind instruments. The earliest mention of wind instruments to convey war orders is found in Ramayan. It was called ‘Goshring’ (cow’s horn). In Rigved, it is referred to as Bakura. In Mahabharat, warriors used conches.

“To jerk his commanders out of their mental preoccupations and reservations, the great leader of the Kaurav army Bhishma took up his conch and blew it, sending forth roaring waves of confidence into the hearts of his troops. It was a battle cry that marked the beginning of the Great War” (Bhagwat Gita 1/12) 

   

As the Indian ceremony enjoys an international viewership, it provides India an opportunity to showcase India’s rich heritage. For example, what is the harm in case buglers are complemented by ‘Ranbakura’, Rajasthan’s traditional wind instrument for calling soldiers to arms? Similarly, martial drums of the North East can be harmonised with military drummers.

Finally, we need not be apologetic of everything Indian? Remember how Yoga and Ayurveda were derided by our Westernised intelligentsia. It is only after the world accepted their scientific excellence that we have started taking pride in them.

It is agreed that the military character of the beating retreat ceremony should not be compromised. However, a fusion of conventional military movements and traditional Indian instruments will only add to the stature of the ceremony and inculcate a sense of national pride.*****