Why patriotic films are the flavour of all seasons

Bollywood’s love affair with patriotic films dates back to several decades. While filmmakers have dabbled with such movies in the post-independence era, too, their tonality and mood largely shifted with the onset of the 2000s.

On one hand, we had films such as Gadar (2001) and The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002) boasting of highly emotive patriotism, the other lot, which includes Swades, Lakshya (both 2004) and Rang De Basanti (2006), projected a new-age definition of aspirational India.

Like every year, an array of films themed on patriotism, including war dramas and spy thrillers, are in the making this year — Major, Tejas, Meri Desh Ki Dharti, Pippa, Sam Bahadur, Attack and Mission Majnu to name a few.

Producer and president of Producers Guild of India, Siddharth Roy Kapur, who is backing war film Pippa believes that the audience is intrigued with India’s rich history and hence, filmmakers have and will continue to tap into the genre. “We’re more curious about where we stand in history and how it has shaped our present. The themes of patriotism and war coincide with the collective consciousness of the viewers. We want to know who our heroes are through cinema,” he shares.

For actor Rakul Preet Singh, who plays a pivotal part in action thriller Attack, the joy of being a part of a film of this genre is unparalleled, as her father was in the Army. . “I feel very proud when I see a patriotic film. It’s beautiful that films have the power to evoke that emotion in people,” she says.

Producer Amar Butala, who is producing Mission Majnu, a patriotic film inspired from true events, feels patriotic films will continue to strike a chord with the audience as it reminds them of chapters from their textbooks and that’s why filmmakers should be responsible while helming such projects. “While we need to make the films entertaining, when we reimagine a story, our priority should always be to pay homage to our men in combat,” he explains.

Actor Adivi Sesh, who plays the lead in Major, agrees with Butala and asserts that playing a martyr comes with immense responsibility: “One tends to take home all the responsibility, emotions and the weightage that comes with playing a martyr. However, it’s also a matter of honour and pride to be able to depict the life of someone who’s truly selfless.”

Producer and film business expert Girish Johar is certain that this genre will never die. “Indians are a bunch of very emotional people. We’re very sentimental about our motherland and patriotism runs very high during Republic Day and Independence Day. So, watching such a film gives us a sense of pride and gratitude,” he says.

Producer and film business expert Girish Johar says this genre can never die and adds, “We, Indians, are sentimental about our motherland. So, watching such films gives us a sense of pride,” he says, adding that the success ratio of such films is particularly high. “The genre has evolved and today, patriotic films are becoming more realistic in their treatment. The audience enjoys watching untold stories and Madras Café (2013), Parmanu: The Story Of Pokhran (2018), Shershaah and Sardar Udham (both 2021) are proof.”