"Mera Joota Hai Japani" (pronounced [ˈmeːɾɑː ˈdʒuːtaː ɦɛː dʒaːˈpaːniː]; lit.
'My Shoes are Japanese') is a Hindi song with music composed by Shankar Jaikishan and lyrics written by Shailendra.
The chorus runs: Due to its patriotic themes, the song was widely embraced in its time as a representation of the newly sovereign nation of India.
The song was also a satirical retort at some of the political leaders and rich upper class of the newly independent India, who boasted of being swadeshi in their clothes, but were extremely western in their thought, outlook, affiliations and deeds.
This is truly the age where the jūtā (shoe) is Japani (Japanese), patlūn (pants) is Inglistani (English), the ṭōpī (hat) is Roosi (Russian), but the dil... dil (heart) is always Hindustani (Indian)... My country, torn, tattered, proud, beautiful, hot, humid, cold, sandy, shining India.