Interesting facts about national anthem and August 14

LAHORE: The national anthem of Pakistan, written by Hafeez Jullandhari (1900-1982) in 1952, was selected from a competition where 723 entries were submitted, research shows.

It was awarded Rs10,000 prize money over 70 years ago. Media archives reveal in 1919, Hafeez, who could not reach beyond primary classes at school because he hated Mathematics, wrote a poem against the British rule and was sent to jail for three months.

Once out of prison, he went to Okara and began selling sewing machines.

In 1948, National Anthem Committee was formed and entrusted with the task to come up with the composition and lyrics for the official national anthem of Pakistan. Annals of history reveal when President Sukarno of Indonesia became the first foreign head of state to visit Pakistan on January 30, 1950, there was no Pakistani national anthem to be played.

Among hundreds of competitors, the composition of Ahmad Chagla was completed and officially accepted by the government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan on August 21, 1950. Chagla had composed it in 1949. The music had surfaced before the lyrics actually completed.

However, as luck would have it, Ahmed Chagla died in 1953, before the new national anthem with his tune could officially be adopted.

Official recognition to the national anthem, however, was not given until August 1954.

The national anthem, with a running time of 80 seconds, was broadcast for the first time on the radio on August 13, 1954, sung by Hafeez Jullandhari himself.

Official approval in this context was given by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on August 16, 1954.

In 1955, not fewer than 11 singers recorded the anthem song, 21 musical instruments and 38 different tones were used in the composition.

The singers included the likes of Ahmed Rushdi, Kaukab Jahan, Rasheeda Begum, Najam Ara, Naseema Shaheen, Zawar Hussain, Akhtar Abbas, Ghulam Dastagir, Anwar Zaheer and Akhtar Wasi Ali.

The coloured video, for the first time—with the flag and anthem—was produced on January 19, 1955.

The national anthem has a dominating Persian influence because the word ‘ka’ is the only word taken from the Urdu language.

In 2011, the national anthem was sung by 5,857 people collectively at the National Stadium Karachi, making a new world record.

On October 20, 2012, over 70,000 people gathered at a stadium in Lahore to sing the anthem to set a new world record for most people gathering at the same venue to sing a national anthem simultaneously. The effort was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records.

In 2021, the then PTI government announced the anthem would be re-recorded with better quality.

The project was completed in 2022 during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s tenure.

Some 155 singers, 48 musicians and six bandmasters participated in the re-recording, which was released on August 14, 2022.

As far as the global historic significance of August 14 as a date is concerned, Bahrain had gained independence from Britain on this day in 1971.

On this day in 1941, British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, and US President, Franklin Roosevelt had signed the Atlantic Charter, which became the basis for the creation of United Nations.

On August 14, 1893, France became the first country to introduce motor vehicle registration.

On this day in 1936, the last known public execution took place in United States, and on August 14, 1945, after American President Harry Truman announced that Japan had surrendered unconditionally, the World War 11 had formally ended, and the world erupted in celebration.

On August 14, 2021, a devastating 7.2 magnitude earthquake had hit Haiti, killing 2,248 people.