Mile Sur Mera Tumhara – Old Is Gold

Yesterday, on the Republic day I was watching Phir Mile Sur, the new version of Mile Sur Mera Tumhara. My first reaction was "OLD IS GOLD". Unfortunately it does not live up to the original.

Though it is not fair to compare, the new version may consists of a lot many great people but the spirit was missing.

I am not sorry to say, in newer version more focus was given on personality selection rather than creating another spiritual & patriotic song.

Some of my friends & family members were shocked after watching this new video of Phir Mile Sur. They were shooting unstoppable questions, what Deepika is doing with bare legs? What is Salman doing with bare body? Is it a national integration song or a fashion parade? Why Sachin, Dr APJ Kalam are missing? Why Sania Mirza, Vishwanathan Anand, Leander Paes, Rajyavardhan Rathore are missing? The questions kept flowing.

Just for the records,Mile sur mera tumhara" was conceptualised and conceived by late Suresh Mallick and it was first aired on Doordarshan on Aug 15, 1988.

The jewels of India like vocalists Bhimsen Joshi and Balamurali Krishna to sitar maestro Ravi Shankar, tabla maestros Allah Rakha and Zakir Hussain to sportsmen Narendra Hirwani and Prakash Padukone featured in the original. Well-known film personalities like Amitabh Bachchan, Lata Mangeshkar, Mithun Chakraborty, Jeetendra, Hema Malini, Shabana Azmi, Javed Akhtar, Kamal Haasan, Sharmila Tagore, Tanuja and Waheeda Rehman too appeared in the national integration song.

I once again saw the complete video of Mile sur mere tumhara on youtube. I have to say that the original video made way back in 1988 was much better.

Phir Mile Sur is not the song of India, rather we can call as song of Bollywood. It should have been released on filmfare or screen award rather than on Republic day.

In my personal opinion, Phir Sur Mile concentrates more on Bollywood celebrities than anything else. Of course Amitabh Bachchan deserves his place to be in the new version, but what about actors like Abhishek Bachchan, Shahid Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika & so many irrelevant personalities being cast.

The producers Arti and Kailash Surendranath would have done a better job by bringing National heroes, Scientists, Entrepreneurs, army men, sportsmen, or even ordinary but powerful common people of our country. India is much more than movies.

The old, original, everlasting song Mile Sur Mera Tumera makes us feels that the song should not finish and continue for some more time. Whereas the new version Phir Mile Sur makes us feel, when will this song complete.

The golden song Mile Sur Mera Tumere was a class apart. It was the heart beat of Indians, It was all about showcasing India, our history, our monuments, our traditions, our true leaders, our sporting legends, our brave soldiers, etc.

Its absolutely true "Phir Mile Sur" has failed to serve the purpose. After seeing all those bollywood celebrities I felt like watching another commercial movie song.

And finally, after answering so many questions, a surprising question came in my mind, was a remake needed in the first place? I don’t think so. Phir Mile Sur doesn't depict unity in diversity. It looks like some set of models or actors coming and fading. Little harsh but true, this new version Phir Mile Sur is like Ram Gopal Verma’s Aag, the remake of Sholay.

Arti and Kailash Surendranath should remember that, if they try to regenerate iconic works of art, the result is as horrible as this one is. It is very unfortunate that even patriotism is used for marketing.

We are forced to idealise the Bollywood stars. Our nation comprises of hard working scientists, smart entrepreneurs, Sporting legends & visionary leaders. It’s high time we should depict what our nation is actually about.