Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; December 26, 2017)

After pursuing the Central Board Of Film Certification (CBFC) for certification for over eight months, the makers of Modi Kaka Ka Gaon are content that the film will finally see the light of the day. Producer Suresh Jha says the “tribute film” on Prime Minister Narendra Modi is unique and it deserves to be seen. Though Modi critics believe it’s a guidebook of his achievements, Jha insists that it’s an endeavour to celebrate the man.

“Though the Prime Minister’s Office and the Information and Broadcasting Ministry had cleared the film, I had a tough time with the CBFC. Despite repeated pleas over the months, they refused to clear my movie. But in this country, we have to be stubborn and not fall prey to corruption. I knew that I am making a film on a man whose ideals are honest. So, it couldn’t have been an easy path,” says Jha, who was hoping to release the film before the Gujarat elections.

It will hit screens on December 29. Directed by Tushar Amrish Goel, the film stars a Modi doppelganger, Vikas Mahante. He plays Nagendra, the prime minister who transforms India through his policy decisions, including demonetization.

Jha calls the film a “tribute” to PM Modi rather than a “biopic”. He explains, “I don’t know Modi ji personally. I have just read about him and his body of work influences me. He is working towards transforming the nation. I have been labelled his public relations agent, but I am not. I am a common man, who is appreciative of his work.”

The producer maintains that nothing in his film refers to Modi directly. “We haven’t copied his characteristics; we have only tried to ape his good work by creating a parallel. We haven’t referred to any political parties either,” he says.

Certified U/A by the CBFC, the film could have been a documentary. But Jha says he wanted to make a commercial, feature film to have a larger impact. “I have been told by the distributors that people are asking for the film despite Tiger Zinda Hai scoring big,” he says, adding that he wanted to rope in PM Modi for a cameo, but it couldn’t materialize given his hectic schedule. Though the project hasn’t hit screens yet, a sequel is already in the works, claims Jha.