For some people, his films are no less than an ordeal. Some have to create new records, while some have to present a new dimension in their career. But some films become a question of life and death for those creators, like “Sam Bahadur” has happened for Meghna Gulzar at this time.
Read in this article how for Meghna Gulzar “Sam Bahadur” is bound to be successful in every respect.
Meghna’s reputation at stake from Sam Bahadur
For the last several years, the history of India is being presented in a new way. Be it the industry, the language, but they all have one thing in common: Now the real heroes of India will be given their due respect. In this episode, news has come that the shooting of the much awaited biopic “Sam Bahadur” has been completed.
The film is directed by Meghna Gulzar and will come under RSVP Movies. The film stars Vicky Kaushal, one of India’s most celebrated auteurs, in the title role and will portray Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw. Additionally, Sanya Malhotra will be essaying the role of his wife Silu while Fatima Sana Shaikh will be seen portraying former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on the silver screen.
The film will trace Sam’s youth in the Indian Army to his role in the 1971 war, and is set to hit the theaters on 1 December 2023. In such a situation, Meghna Gulzar has to not only do justice to the legacy of this brave soldier, but also ensure that his image is not sacrificed to agendas.
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“Raazi” and “Chhapaak” have ruined their reputation
But why worry about agendaism, and for what? Meghna Gulzar is not a bad filmmaker to say the least. He left his mark with the film “Talvar” released in 2015. But with “Raazi” and “Chhapaak” there has been a big question mark on his abilities as a filmmaker.
“Raazi” was based on the Indo-Pak war of 1971, and was inspired by the book “Calling Sehmat”. The film proved to be a financial success for Meghna, and it was an important role for Alia Bhatt, who played the lead role, in which she was also successful. But the film lost its ground on facts, and the film was accused of promoting leftist agenda and showing Pakistan in a positive light.
We are not saying this, these allegations were made by Harinder Sikka, author of “Calling Sehmat” and former Indian Navy officer.
In a sensational interview in 2020, he revealed that even if Raazi had won a National Award, he would not have accepted it. This is because the film was the exact opposite of his original book, and Sehmat was feeling guilty about his act, exactly opposite to the original book.
And how can you forget “Chhapaak”? This was the film which flopped only because of the agendaism of its original actress. The film was not as bad as compared to “Raazi”, but the way it created a ruckus, and Deepika Padukone’s visit to JNU in the name of protesting against CAA ruined the film.
The right stone was completed by Ajay Devgan, who released “Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior” in theaters on the same day or 10 January 2020, based on the bravery of Subedar Tanaji Malusare.
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failure is not an option
In such a situation, failure is not an option for Meghna Gulzar, and just making the film a hit will not work. “Sam Bahadur” i.e. Sam Manekshaw has done such feats that a whole web series can be made on him.
But if making it a film, then at least Sam Manekshaw’s personality has to be made strong and strong. A good and true filmmaker is the one who is like himself in his personal life, but does not impose his ideology in his films. Abhay Pannu has no special connection with Indianness, but he has made interesting web series like “Rocket Boys”. So what an impossible task for Meghna Gulzar to do justice to the persona of “Sam Bahadur”?
