MUMBAI: Shoojit Sircar’s ambitious project Sardar Udham starring Vicky Kaushal, released just a couple of weeks ago and it became a fan favourite instantly. Even the critics went gaga over the portrayal of the unsung hero of India’s freedom struggle. What became a cherry on the cake for the film’s team is that only within a few days of its release, the film was shortlisted for consideration as India’s official entry for Oscars 2022.
However, the film lost that battle to the Tamil film Koozhangal. Fans of Sardar Udham were disappointed with the film not making the cut and now jury member Indraadip Dasgupta has come forward to explain that it happened because the film projects Indians’ hatred towards the British.
He told a leading daily, “Sardar Udham is a little lengthy and harps on the Jallianwala Bagh incident. It is an honest effort to make a lavish film on an unsung hero of the Indian freedom struggle. But in the process, it again projects our hatred towards the British. In this era of globalization, it is not fair to hold on to this hatred.” Although he praised the film’s production that he agrees were up to international standards.
Another jury member Sumit Basu insisted that it was the run time of the film that didn’t go in its favour. “Many have loved Sardar Udham for its cinematic quality including camerawork, editing, sound design and depiction of the period. I thought the length of the film was an issue. It has a delayed climax. It takes a lot of time for a viewer to feel the real pain for the martyrs of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre,” he asserted.
Sardar Udham tells the story of freedom fighter Sardar Udham Singh, who assassinated Michael O’Dwyer in London in retaliation for the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre in Amritsar in 1919. He was consequently hanged in 1940 for the assassination of Dwyer.
Also read: Shoojit Sircar: I don't want 'Sardar Udham' to be limited to Punjab
Stay tuned for more updates at Tellychakkar.com
Add new comment