General Fujiwara handed over 60,000 Indian Prisoners of War to General Mohan Singh, of the 14 Punjab Regiment, who was instrumental in the creation of the Indian National Army (INA). It was during his captivity that he began to hone his musical skills further. He was tasked by his captors to play the piano in the officers club. As a Prisoner of War Captain Ram Singh escaped being treated harshly due to his musical skills. The ignominy of the British Empire in the colony regarded as a diadem in the colonial crown was shattering.Īfter the fall of Singapore, the Japanese forces took a large number of PoWs. On 15 February 1942, Singapore fell and the Allied forces surrendered to General Fujiwara. The flames of Second World were spreading and his battalion was shipped overseas to Singapore. While serving in the North-West Frontier Province he earned the King George VI Medal for bravery during the 1937- 39 Khyber-Phaktunwala war and was promoted as Company Havildar Major. Apart from classical and Western music, he took a liking to ballads. Captain Rose would teach him to master the violin. He was trained by renowned British musicians, Hadson and Danish in brass, string and dance music. Capt Ram Singh Thakuri did not look back and continued to attain new horizons in the field of music.Īpart from classical and western music, he was fond of ballads, football, sports and wrestling. After completing school in 1922, he in 1924 joined the 1/4 Gorkha Rifles at Dharamshala Cantonment as a recruit in the unit band.įrom early childhood, he had an interest in music, which was encouraged by his grandfather Mr Jamni Chand who migrated from Munakot village in Pithoragarh district, Uttarakhand in 1890 and by his maternal grandfather, Shri Nathu Chand. He was motivated in his youth by his father, Havildar Dilip Singh who had groomed him to don the uniform. Opening NotesĬapt Ram Singh was born on 15 August 1914, at, Khaniyara, about 7 km from Dharamshala town in Himachal Pradesh, in the Thakuri family who were ruling royals of Nepal until 2008. While accusations fly in cyberspace about “correct version’’ of history, one forgets to remember the correct version behind the history of the “Jana Gana Mana.’’ Captain Ram Singh Thakuri, the musical legend of the INA lies forgotten and his invaluable contributions to Indian martial music a fading note. While heated debates raged in the recent past on whether one should stand up for the National Anthem or if it is a violation of individual freedom when it is played in cinema halls, forgotten lies the fact about the person who gave music to our stirring anthem.
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