New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s birthday might have been on Wednesday, but the celebrations continued on Thursday as lyricist and storyteller Manoj Muntashir brought his latest creation, Mera Desh Pahle, to Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in a dramatic retelling of the PM’s life.The performance opened with invocations to Lord Ram. While dwelling on the trials before Ram’s rajyabhishek, it mirrored Modi’s rise to leadership after enduring hardship. Muntashir’s narration guided the audience through PM’s childhood as “Naru” in Vadnagar, the influence of his mother Heeraben and his formative years spent at the local railway station. Anecdotal references portrayed a young boy deeply aware of service and sacrifice, foreshadowing the leader he would become.
The script then touched on the pivotal episodes of Modi’s life: his years of self-discovery in the Himalayas, his early RSS involvement and the turbulence of the Emergency, where he was shown as a dissenter working underground in disguise. Later acts turned to political milestones — from his role in Gujarat politics to BJP’s expansion, and ultimately his rise as PM in 2014.But the saga did not stop at nostalgia. Much like Modi’s global roadshows, Mera Desh Pahle leaned heavily on topics that have become synonymous with his tenure: the abrogation of Article 370, passage of the triple talaq law and the consecration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The script painted these not simply as policy decisions but as the culmination of promises made since Independence.The final act was devoted to projecting Modi as the architect of India’s future. References to Chandrayaan-3, digital payments, surgical strikes and economic growth, all arranged to suggest that India, under Modi, was ready to claim the 21st century much as Britain dominated the 19th and the United States the 20th centuries. The evening ended with the rousing chant of Har Har Mahadev.The show was inaugurated by BJP president JP Nadda, CM Rekha Gupta and minister Kapil Mishra. The musical saga, directed by Deepak Gattani and featuring singer B Praak, was more than a cultural evening — it was the latest in a long line of spectacles that have built, polished and relaunched Brand Modi over the past decade. If earlier it was Howdy, Modi! in Houston, G’Day, Modi! in Sydney and UK Welcomes Modi in London, Thursday’s jam-packed stadium, its atmosphere closer to a rock concert than a political meeting, underlined how Modi’s journey has been framed as both personal struggle and national triumph.
