The rousing chords and stirring message of ‘Jana Gana Mana’ are familiar to every Indian citizen. The song defines with clarity India’s most cherished values. Composed by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, it celebrates the unity in our diverse and plural society, praises the beauty of our mountains, rivers, and seas, and honours our civilizational values. In this insightful study, scholar and historian Rudrangshu Mukherjee traces its origins (showing us what its creator had in mind when he composed the song), explains how and why it was chosen over other contenders, examines the occasional controversies that have surrounded it, and reminds us about the truths that underlie it. The national anthem is visionary. It recognizes and salutes everything that is brave, noble, and unique about our country. It also contains within it a promise and a pledge to uphold our lofty ideals and traditions. Citizens, and especially our elected representatives, should understand that every time they stand up in respect when ‘Jana Gana Mana’ is played or sung, it is their responsibility to fulfil the promise and honour the pledge.

Read an excerpt from the book on Moneycontrol. It is published by Aleph Book Company.

Rudrangshu Mukherjee is Chancellor and Professor of History at Ashoka University, of which he was the founding Vice Chancellor. He was educated at Calcutta Boys’ School, Presidency College, Calcutta, JNU, and St Edmund Hall, Oxford. He was awarded a DPhil in Modern History by the University of Oxford. He has taught in the department of history, Calcutta University, and held visiting appointments at Princeton University, Manchester University, and the University of California, Santa Cruz. From 1993 to 2014, he was the Editor, Editorial Pages, The Telegraph. He is the author of many books—these include Nehru & Bose: Parallel Lives; Awadh in Revolt 1857–58: A Study of Popular Resistance; Spectre of Violence: The Massacres in Kanpur in 1857; The Year of Blood: Essays on 1857; Dateline 1857: Revolt against the Raj. His recent books include A Begum and A Rani: Hazrat Mahal and Lakshmibai in 1857; Tagore and Gandhi: Walking Alone, Walking Together, which won the Valley of Words Award 2022, non-fiction; and Twilight Falls on Liberalism. He is the editor of Great Speeches of Modern India and The Penguin Gandhi Reader, and the co-author (with Shobita Punja and Toby Sinclair) of A New History of India: From Its Origins to the Twenty-First Century.

15 August 2025