Independence Day 2023: 'Hearing Britishers sing 'Jaya He' at the end of national anthem gave me goosebumps'

To commemorate India’s 76 years of independence, three-time Grammy Award winner Ricky Kej conducted Britain’s most in-demand orchestra, the 100-member Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, to perform India’s national anthem. He spoke exclusively to Asianet News Network

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra needs no introduction, and neither does three-time Grammy Award-winning musician Ricky Kej. But when both come together to offer a rendition of the National Anthem of India, as a celebration of 76 years of the country's independence, a soulful and mesmerising version of the anthem emerges. Ricky Kej has unveiled a new version of the Indian National Anthem on the eve of Independence Day.

Watch the full interview here or continue scrolling

Imagine watching over a hundred musicians playing the national anthem at London's Abbey Road Studios, where the likes of The Beatles and Pink Floyd recorded legendary songs. "It was absolutely mind-blowing," said Kej while speaking exclusively to Asianet News Network.

"There was an added advantage as well. The British have ruled us for 200 years and getting an Indian composer to actually lead them and conduct them (Royal Philharmonic Orchestra) to perform the Indian national anthem was quite amazing," the Grammy Award-winning musician said.

The idea was to create the "most definitive" version of the national anthem. The musician said that the entire project was self-funded; no corporate money was used. "I am gifting this to Indians around the world. Use it wherever you want. I do not want any royalties; just spread it far and wide. That's because it is a very respectful version of the national anthem," Kej said.

'This is what New India is all about'

According to Kej, the fact that a British orchestra performing the Indian national anthem is a reflection of what the New India is all about. "Every country has a national anthem. Why do they have one? Because music brings the country together. The minute you hear the first few notes of the national anthem, it does not matter who you are or where you are, immediately you will have a sense of pride of being an Indian. That's what music does," he said.

Going into details, Kej said, "I wanted to do an epic version of the national anthem. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is my favourite orchestra in the world. I have collaborated with them multiple times in the past. I have collaborated with other orchestras too. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is amazing; they are very professional. They have performed on some of the biggest movie soundtracks and with some of the greatest composers and conductors. I believed that they would be the most suited to bring this epic rendition to life."

'Recording happened in just 45 minutes'

"Three months of planning went into reimagining the anthem. Every Royal Philharmonic Orchestra member had to be briefed about what to play. We wrote down everything on a sheet of paper and gave them all their parts, and everything has to come in harmony. That took about three months. But the recording happened in just 45 minutes. It is a one-minute piece; we did four-five rehearsals; everything came out right. We recorded another four-five times, and it was done," he said.

Challenges during Recording

"We had to make sure that the anthem sounds as epic as possible and at the same time, at some points, the entire orchestra is playing together and sometimes we bring it down to a few instruments so that there is a dynamic range. There are ups and downs. So that was the challenge of how to create these ups and downs. There are so many different personalities in an orchestra. There are so many different instruments. But when you listen to the whole thing, it sounds amazing," Kej said.   

'Britishers singing 'Jaya He' gave me goosebumps'

Asked about how he felt post-recording, the musician recalled having goosebumps when he heard the British orchestra members sing 'Jaya He' at the end of the Indian national anthem.

"At the ending of the anthem, we have all the British choir members... the singers sing 'Jaya He'. That gave me goosebumps. Because listening to the British singing 'Jaya He' after having ruled us for 200 years, our relations have never been better than what it is today. I wanted to showcase a beautiful partnership between India and Britain," he said.

Watch the reimagined national anthem here