Junoon
Year: 1978
Based on: Ruskin Bond’s A flight of Pigeons
Screenplay and direction: Shyam Benegal
Produced by: Shashi Kapoor
Set in 1857 India, Junoon explores the romantic within the rebel and the rebel within the romantic. It is set in 1857, with the First War of Independence as its backdrop. The perspective is that of Javed Khan, one of the leaders of the Mutiny (played by Shashi Kapoor).
The film discusses the deeper truths of the rebellion. Javed Khan storms a British hideout and imprisons three British women. He falls in love with Ruth (played by Nafisa Ali) and wants her to be his second wife. The romance falls apart as British seek retribution for those killed by the rebels.
Junoon was India’s toast at most international film festivals (1978-1980), and it brought home a bagful of awards.
Jhansi Ki Rani
Year: 1953
Producer/director: Sohrab Modi
India’s first technicolour film, Jhansi Ki Rani, was Sohrab Modi's dream-come-true project. He brought technicians from Hollywood to work on the SFX and battle sequences.
Mehtab, the star of the year, was cast in the title role. Modi essayed the role of the Raj Guru. The film was received well by contemporary critics and it was applauded for "its authenticity in creating the right period and delineating historical events, its spectacular battle scenes and Mehtab's stirring performance though she is far too old for the role." There is a Ball sequence in the Jhansi palace, which was shot spectacularly by Modi.
In spite of the critical acclaim, the film fell flat at the box-office.
Mangal Pandey: The Rising
Year: 2005
Written by: Farrukh Dhondy
Directed by: Ketan Mehta
Produced by: Bobby Bedi
Cast: Aamir Khan, Toby Stevens, Rani Mukherji
Mangal Pandey: The Rising (Indian title) is the typical example of a speculative period film. It is supposed to be the biopic of a sepoy called Mangal Pandey, who had "spent the first bullet of the 1857 mutiny." Half of what we see on screen, here, is an assortment of historical fiction rather than fact.
Made on the lines of a ballad, the Ketan Mehta film failed to connect with the 21st Century Indian. This was primarily because of the fact that the premise for the film was an assumption rather than a truth.
Comic Relief: Mard
Year: 1985
Written by: Inder Raj Anand/Pushpa Raj Anand
Produced and directed by: Manmohan Desai
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Amrita Singh
Mard is the story of Raju Tangewala (Amitabh Bachchan. Who else!), who is a contemporary of Mahatma Gandhi. He gets India her freedom in the space of three hours. This he achieves after facing innumerable perils at the hands of "khoon-choosing angrez". He falls into quicksand, but is rescued by a talking dog and a thinking horse. The Angrez Hukumat puts him in the fray with his imprisoned King-Dad, and is asked to commence a gladiatorial duel. The son recognizes the father (and vice-versa) and together they bring tabahi upon the British Raj.
Manmohan Desai scrambles space and time to allude to everything related to India’s freedom struggle. A masterpiece in pop-art, Mard is the anti-dote to the one who is overfed on classic period films.
Year: 1985
Written by: Inder Raj Anand/Pushpa Raj Anand
Produced and directed by: Manmohan Desai
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Amrita Singh
Mard is the story of Raju Tangewala (Amitabh Bachchan. Who else!), who is a contemporary of Mahatma Gandhi. He gets India her freedom in the space of three hours. This he achieves after facing innumerable perils at the hands of "khoon-choosing angrez". He falls into quicksand, but is rescued by a talking dog and a thinking horse. The Angrez Hukumat puts him in the fray with his imprisoned King-Dad, and is asked to commence a gladiatorial duel. The son recognizes the father (and vice-versa) and together they bring tabahi upon the British Raj.
Manmohan Desai scrambles space and time to allude to everything related to India’s freedom struggle. A masterpiece in pop-art, Mard is the anti-dote to the one who is overfed on classic period films.
Saat Hindustani
Year: 1969
Produced, directed and written by: K.A. Abbas
Cast: Utpal Dutt, Amitabh Bachchan, Jalal Agha, Madhu
Saat Hindustani is known today as the debut vehicle of Amitabh Bachchan. But there is more to it than meets the eye. K.A. Abbas, inspired by Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, tells the heroic story of seven Indians, who attempt to liberate Goa from the Portuguese colonial rule. Amitabh Bachchan played one of the seven Indians (a Muslim poet) captured by "the enemy nation" as POW.
A decade later, Bachchan starred in another film titled Pukar (directed by Ramesh Behl), which again had the liberation of Goa as the theme. This time, it looked as if it was Amitabh Bachchan, the superhero, who had liberated Goa from Portuguese yoke!
Year: 1969
Produced, directed and written by: K.A. Abbas
Cast: Utpal Dutt, Amitabh Bachchan, Jalal Agha, Madhu
Saat Hindustani is known today as the debut vehicle of Amitabh Bachchan. But there is more to it than meets the eye. K.A. Abbas, inspired by Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, tells the heroic story of seven Indians, who attempt to liberate Goa from the Portuguese colonial rule. Amitabh Bachchan played one of the seven Indians (a Muslim poet) captured by "the enemy nation" as POW.
A decade later, Bachchan starred in another film titled Pukar (directed by Ramesh Behl), which again had the liberation of Goa as the theme. This time, it looked as if it was Amitabh Bachchan, the superhero, who had liberated Goa from Portuguese yoke!
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