Ironically, I was selected for Gadar for the same reasons that I was rejected for Lagaan. There, I got to know that Lagaan’s director Ashutosh Gowariker had rejected me because, according to him, my eyes looked too intelligent and educated to play the village belle.

He put me at ease completely.Then I went to New Zealand to shoot for Kaho Na… Pyar Hai. Yet, he treated me gently and affectionately. That’s where I met Aamir for the first time.He was a superstar I was a nobody. Ameesha told me she had the privilege of auditioning for both Gadar and Lagaan. Was Ameesha Patel the first choice to play Sakeena, Tara Singh’s estranged better-half? According to a source Anil Sharma was in extended talks with Kajol for Sakeena. Anil Sharma told the same story in Gadar with some cosmetic changes.ģ. Gadar was actually inspired by a 1999 superhit Punjabi film Shaheed-e-Mohabbat Boota Singh where singer-actor Gurdaas Maan trudges actors the border to get his wife Divya Dutt back. Gadar was released on the same Friday as Aamir Khan’s historic Lagaan and actually made more money in the long run (pun intended).Ģ. Gadar: Ek Prem Katha was a mammoth pre-Partition melodrama where Sunny Deol sets off across the border to bring his wife Ameesha Patel back from Pakistan, the film’s passionate patriotism made it one of the biggest box office successes in the history of Bollywood. Tu sum it up, Gadar is a true cinematic experience fulfilling exactly what cinema is all about in the end: entertainment. Amrish Puri is excellent because he always is although his part veers into caricature, and Lillete Dubey is very good, too. I wish she made more use of her tremendous potential. His leading lady, Amisha Patel is luminous in a beautiful performance that remains her best work to this day. I've liked him ever since his debut back in 1983 with Betaab, and here he gives a passionate, intense performance both in the early portions where he brilliantly plays Tara's innocent shyness and wholesome personality and in the later parts where he turns into the fierce action star he is known to be.

Sunny Deol is tremendous in the lead role. Yes, some of the later parts get overblown both emotionally and in terms of the portrayal of the animosity between the two sides which is really a little childish and hard to believe, but it's a movie, and it's all within the context of a mainstream Hindi film. The traditional music is wonderful, and Uttam Singh can always be counted on to deliver beautiful melodies. The film's huge tonal shift from brutal riots to pure romance and marital bliss to action-packed thriller makes the entire experience into quite an exhilarating rollercoaster ride. The sets and costumes are excellently chosen to create the desired atmosphere of that era. The production values in this regard are fantastic. The action that follows is excellent, and their escape later on is one of the most thrilling, entertaining and well-shot sequences of its kind. The romantic portions are beautiful and actually quite subtly done (note the scene where Sakeena helps Tara wear his turban, or the scene where she confesses to him - wonderful). The proceedings move at a fast pace, and even more so as the story unfolds. The film is thoroughly watchable and interesting, and it keeps the viewers (well it kept me, for sure) on the edge of their seats for its entire duration. Gadar is not a historical film, but it's quite a remarkable epic film in its extraordinary entertainment value.

He takes her under his protection and gives her shelter in gratitude of her kindness to him before. Tara, aiming to kill Muslims, is shocked to find Sakina, whom he used to know years before Partition. The film presents the atrocities of war during Partition, with particular emphasis on the Punjab riots, where Hindus and Muslims kill each other on each group's migration to their destined country (India/Pakistan). Set during the 1947 India-Pakistan Partition, the film tells the love story between Tara Singh, a Sikh truck driver, and Sakina, a girl coming from an aristocratic Muslim family. Indeed, Gadar is pulp history, and it's not the best picture in its presentation of the warring sides.

Gadar ek prem katha review