There are few who don't get a lump in the throat when the national anthem is played, especially when it wraps up with the distinctive flourish of 'Jaya He!'. But the irony is that Rabindranath Tagore never intended Jana Gana Mana to be signed off with 'Jaya He!' The bard had actually written four more verses of our moving anthem, which hardly anybody knows about.

Now, for the first time in the nation's history, these four verses, set to music and produced by Saregama, will be presented to the nation by The Times of India. At a special launch ceremony this evening, two days before the nation celebrates its Independence Day, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee will release 'Jaya He!' a unique, limited edition rendition of these verses.

Thirty-nine of India's best loved voices from across the country — from Hindustani classical masters like Girija Devi and Shiv Kumar Sharma to Carnatic wizards like Nithyashree Mahadevan and M Balamuralikrishna, from playback singers like Sonu Nigam and Alka Yagnik to folk singers like Lopamudra Mitra and Lakhkhandas Paul — will be singing small strands from these riveting verses. Over the next few days, the four stanzas will also be unveiled at the 9pm News Hour on Times Now.

Though the anthem is set in Bengali, it is comprehensible to almost every Indian because of its strong Sanskrit flavour. While it is well known that the first stanza is a paean to the astonishing geographical diversity of India, the second is a tribute to its multiple communities and the remaining, a salutation to India's undying spirit.

The poem, set to music by Gurudev himself, was first sung at the Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress in 1911. It was officially adopted as the Indian national anthem on January 24, 1950.