New Delhi, Jul 05: A special video featuring an original tribute song celebrating the valour and sacrifices of soldiers and officers who took part in the Kargil war, was Friday launched here by Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat to commemorate 20 years of the conflict.
Dedicated to Kargil heroes, the video features Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan, Olympic medallist boxer Mary Kom, actors Salman Khan, Anupam Kher, Kangana Ranaut, Suniel Shetty, and Vicky Kaushal of ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’ fame.
The song titled ‘Tujhe Bhulega Na Tera Hindustan’ has been penned by well-known Bollywood lyricist Sameer, who was also present during the launch of the video at an event held at Manekshaw Centre to commemorate 20th anniversary of Kargil war.
General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) Northern Command Lt Gen Ranbir Singh announced at the event that the video clip of the song will be played soon in movie theatres, TV channels and on the internet as part of the weeks-long activities planned ahead of the main event on Kargil Vijay Diwas on July 27 that will culminate the centenary celebrations.
Rawat, later interacting with reporters, said, “Today, we are here to celebrate 20 years of Kargil and Operation Vijay and the Northern Command as well as the 14 Corps have kick-started the celebrations to be held over the next few weeks”.
Operation Vijay was India’s limited war against Pakistan in Kargil in 1999.
“It is an ode to those officers who guided the soldiers to victory at icy heights of Kargil, as rightly depicted in the theme song (video). It was very touching and moving moment for all of us. Let us all celebrate and rejoice the 20 years of the victory,” he said.
GOC-in-C Northern Command Lt Gen Singh said Kargil victory celebrations is a “national festival”.
“The 20th year celebrations mark the gallantry of the soldiers who participated in Op Vjay, and how the Indian army stood tall, and evicted enemies from Pakistan perched on top of jagged hills. It is also a saga of sacrifices and valour of our soldiers,” he said.
It is also tribute to senior officers like Lt Gen Mohinder Puri, who guided operations at that time, Lt Gen Singh said.
Puri later authored the book, ‘Kargil: Turning the Tide’, which contains a gripping account of the operations of 8 Mountain Division, which was tasked to evict the enemy from the Drass-Mushkoh Sector during Op Vijay. Puri led the division during the operation.
“On behalf of all ranks of the Northern Command, let me assure that should there be any contingency that may come up in the command theatre, we will continue with the same resolve to deliver the military objectives set for us,” Singh said.
Sameer said the song was very special to him, adding, “before penning the song, I went to Leh, Ladakh and Kargil to feel the emotions running through my senses”.
A number of events have been planned by the Army in Delhi and Drass in Jammu and Kashmir this month to mark the 20th anniversary of the ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’.
The main anniversary celebrations for this year will be spread over three days from July 25-27.
“Year 2019 marks the 20th anniversary of victory in ‘Operation Vijay’, popularly known as the ‘Kargil War’. The Kargil War is a saga of strong political, military and diplomatic actions. The nation shall be celebrating the 20th anniversary of victory this year in Kargil War with pride, honour and inspiration,” the Army had earlier said.
A wreath memorial ceremony will be organised at the ‘Kargil War Memorial’ in Drass on the Kargil Vijay Diwas (July 26) to honour the soldiers who laid down their lives during the ‘Operation Vijay’, officials said.
The event will be followed by ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas Evening’, a cultural extravaganza, at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium on July 27 in Delhi.
