Members of Indonesian delegation singing ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ at Rashtrapati Bhawan on January 25, 2025 | ANI
Republic Day celebrations represent national pride and display of national strength. But it is also a day to remember nation’s culture which has huge part in making of a strong nation. Since more than a millennia, Indian culture has been influencing Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia, the president of which is Chief Guest for this year’s Republic Day.
A unique ode to confluence of cultures of India and Indonesia was given by a delegation from Indonesia. On a day when Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto was receiving honours in India. A group of youngsters sand the song ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Saturday (January 25).
Check out the video below.
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai is a 1998 Hindi film. While it did not have any patriotic connotations, the movie is often seen to be a landmark movie that heralded the change of era in Hindi movies. Until then, Hindi movies were somewhat of a formulaic product of good vs evil. But the youth-centric Kuch Kuch Hota Hai touched upon delicate themes like young love, loss and life in general.
The movie was a mega-hit. The music of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was appreciated throughout India as well to the extent that the tunes are remembered across generations even today.
India-Indonesia Relations And Indian Influence In Southeast Asia
India-Indonesia cultural ties go back to the time of ancient epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata. The strong cultural ties resulted in comprehensive people-to-people contact.
India, already an influential civilization in ancient times, saw many of its cultural aspects spread to the archipelago nation. This meant adoption of Pallawa script and even Sanskrit.
Many empires, particularly in Southern India, built strong navies and had political influence in Indonesia.
