New Delhi: The mega historical new Doordarshan's Hindi serial 'Swaraj- Bharat Ke Swatantrata Sangram ki Samagra Gatha' was launched by Union Minister of Home Affairs and Cooperation Amit Shah on Friday.

Launching the serial, he said the objective of “Swaraj” would be achieved in a true sense only if the country’s languages, dharma, culture and arts are preserved and its history passed on to future generations.

Sharing his thoughts on this new show, Shah recalled the time stalwarts like Pandit Jasraj and Ustal Bismillah Khan had said that if it had not been for Akashwani, they would not have existed. “It is not possible to spread the expression of the essence of India without Doordarshan & All India Radio," he said.

The minister deliberated on the meaning of the celebration of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav and said it is not just a celebration of our freedom struggle but also of the achievements of the past 75 years since independence, of the sacrifices of the sung and unsung heroes of our freedom struggle.

"This is also a time when we are visualizing the contours of the future of India and India is only going to attain greater heights of excellence from here," he added.

Swaraj is a 75 episode serial produced in 4K/HD quality and will air every Sunday from 9-10 pm on Doordarshan National from 14 August.

It is being dubbed in nine regional languages along with English. The serial in regional languages Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati, Oriya, Bengali and Assamese will be broadcast on Doordarshan's regional channels from 20 August. Starting from the landing of Vasco-da-gama in 1498 the serial presents a rich saga of the heroes of this land.

Speaking on the occasion, the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Anurag Thakur remarked that Doordarshan and All India Radio had done a commendable job of reviving the valiant stories of over 550 freedom fighters and enabling the acquaintance of the younger generations with these unsung heroes.

Speaking about the serial, the minister said, "It is aimed at reimagining the vision behind the idea of swaraj and tell the stories of the leaders that moulded that idea into a reality. The serial is a manifestation of our pride in these heroes from the past. With satisfaction in his expressions, the minister stated that intense research had gone into making the serial and information and documents have been collected from all the corners of the country to bring to life these stories from our freedom struggle."

The Union Minister of State for I&B Dr L. Murugan, Secretary of I&B Apurva Chandra and Prasar Bharati CEO Mayank Agarwal were also present during the launch. Various members of parliament, senior officials of the ministry, Doordarshan and All India Radio news were present on the occasion.

Speaking on the occasion, Prasar Bharti chief executive officer Mayank Agarwal said, "The serial will be broadcast on Akashwani along with Doordarshan."

Agarwal expressed his gratitude to the team behind the production of this serial for their extensive research and diligence.