Indian shooter Manu Bhaker celebrated India’s 79th Independence Day by playing the national anthem on the violin. This unique tribute follows her historic double medal win at the Paris Olympics, adding another dimension to her celebrated career.
Indian shooting star and double Olympic medalist, Manu Bhaker, made an attempt to play violin and perform India’s national anthem on the 79th year of Independence on August 15, Friday.
India celebrates its 79th year of freedom from the British, who ruled the country for nearly two centuries before independence in 1947. The nation’s journey to attain independence from the hands of the British rulers, who imposed social, economic, and political control over the Indian sub-continent, was marked by decades of struggle, mass movements, and sacrifices of countless freedom fighters.
From the Quit India Movement to the Non-Cooperation and Civil Disobedience Movements, India’s struggle for freedom from British rule was fueled by unity and people’s resilience, eventually Britishers’ withdrawal from the Indian subcontinent in 1947, paving the way for the birth of a sovereign, democratic nation.
Manu Bhaker’s unique tribute to India’s 79th year of freedom
As Indian athletes celebrate the 79th year of the country’s independence, Paris Olympics double medalist Manu Bhaker had a unique way of paying tribute to the nation’s freedom by playing the national anthem on a violin.
Taking to her Instagram handle, Manu Bhaker can be seen playing India’s anthem on the violin alongside her master to o create a soulful rendition that blended perfectly with heartfelt patriotism.
Along with the video, Manu Bhaker wrote, “An attempt to play the tune that is closest to my heart this Independence Day.”
“Each time I represent India, I wish to stand on the podium and listen to this. Generally, we sit and play the violin, but this time subconsciously, we stood up while playing the National Anthem. It’s the admiration for our nation that cannot be put into words.
Jai Hind!”
Last year, a few weeks before India’s 78th year of independence, Manu Bhaker scripted history by becoming the first Indian athlete to clinch two medals in a single edition of the Olympics. Bhaker clinched two bronze medals, each in women’s 10m air pistol and the mixed team 10m air pistol with fellow Indian shooter Sarabjot Singh.
Overall, Manu Bhaker became the second individual to win two Olympic medals after Sushil Kumar and Neeraj Chopra in independent India.
Manu Bhaker’s rise to glory
Manu Bhaker emerged as one of the young, talented shooters to watch out for when she clinched a gold medal at the 2018 ISSF World Cup. In the same year, Bhaker attained further glory by winning the gold medals at the Commonwealth Games and Youth Olympics
Three years later, in 2021, the Haryana-born shooter was part of a 15-member Indian shooting contingent that participated at the Tokyo Olympics. Bhaker was one of the strong favourites to win medals at the 2021 Olympics, but an untimely equipment malfunction and a string of narrow misses saw her bow out without a podium finish.
Thereafter, Manu Bhaker quested for a strong comeback in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Before the Paris Olympics, the 23-year-old won the Gold Medal at the 2022 Asian Games, three silver medals at the 2022 Junior World Cup, a silver and bronze medal at the 2025 and 2024 World Cups, respectively, and a silver medal at the Asian Championships.
Manu Bhaker removed the stains of her setback at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics by clinching two bronze medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, reaffirming her status as one of the most celebrated sportspersons on the global stage.