Five movies to watch during Indian Independence Day!

First of all, let me wish all my Indian friends a happy Independence Day. My Pakistani brothers, I am sorry I got late by a day to wish you. A very belated happy Independence Day to Pakistan too.

Over the years, a number of films depicting the partition have been released in India. But I’ll stay away from it because more often than not, it tends to become very biased.

Instead, here’s a list of patriotic movies that can be watched by anyone, anytime. It has more meaning today than ever before. So without much further ado, here’s a good watch list for the day.

1. Rang De Basanti

I was a college student in the Indian capital when this movie released. So it resonated well with myself, and the crowd around me. I remember RDB becoming a celebration of modern Indian youth.

Sue, a British filmmaker, comes to India to make a documentary about the lives of Indian freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and Chandrashekhar Azad.

She takes help from a group of ‘college students.’ When one of their friends dies in a military accident, they assume the roles of modern day freedom fighters to take on a corrupt system. The casting was simply superb, as was direction.

2. Lagaan

Ashutosh Gowariker first came into India’s collective consciousness by marrying the country’s two passions — cinema and cricket — together in a mega movie named Lagaan (tax).

Aamir Khan’s Bhuvan is a villager in British-ruled India and a born leader. He challenges the Britishers to a game of cricket, which none in their village knows, in exchange for abandonment of taxes during a draught-ridden year.

He builds a rag-tag team of survivors who hates the British officers with a passion. And of course, they beat them in a game of Test cricket. The movie, which has become a case study for Indian management courses, was also an official entry for the Oscars.

3. Swades

Gowariker shot this heartwarming tale of an NRI scientist, working at NASA, who comes back to India for a family need. He gets struck by the situations around him and realise he can make a difference.

Putting his well-paying American job behind him, he settles down in his home village and becomes more of an Indian than he’d ever been.

Though it didn’t become a big hit at home, it played on sentiments and patriotism of non-resident Indians and was a mammoth crowd puller overseas. It’s a nice watch. But be prepared to cry into your towel more than once.

4. Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey

If you see three out of five movies in this list as being directed by Gowariker, it says something about his core field of expertise, doesn’t it?

Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey is based on Manini Chatterjee’s book ‘Do or Die’ which chronicles the Chittagong Uprising of 1930.

Surjya Sen, a teacher fondly called Masterda, is also a leader in the revolutionary Indian Republican Army Chittagong. The way he brings people around him to rise against tyrannical British rule forms the crux of the story.

5. Chak De India (2007)

The movie, directed by Shimit Amin, uses women’s field hockey to tell an inspiring tale of patriotism and fighting back for something you truly believe in.

The director also explores themes of sexism as well as ethnic, regional and religious prejudices.

Shah Rukh Khan plays a former Indian hockey player who had to resign in disgrace. But he is given a second chance at the game when he forms a disjointed team of girls to try and win the world championship. The film ends with the girls going on to become world-beaters.

India welcomed the movie with open arms.