Niharika Lal (BOMBAY TIMES; August 14, 2019)

With Shah Rukh Khan shooting for the multi-starrer tribute video dedicated to the CRPF personnel martyred in the Pulwama attack, Tu Desh Mera has added another name to its star list. Despite his busy schedule, the actor shot for the four-minute video last week. As many as 14 actors were approached to shoot for the video, and most, including Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Ranbir Kapoor, have already done so.

Moses Dhinakaran, DIG and official spokesman of the CRPF, says, “This tribute to our heroes and martyrs reaffirms our faith that the whole nation stands in solidarity with us. The overwhelming participation of celebrities for the cause is commendable and heartening. The initiative of Happy Productions in bringing up the idea and its resolute execution deserves all the praise. Our ability to stand united gives us a formidable strength to face challenges and makes our nation great.”

Abhishek Mishra, MD, Happy Productions India, tells us, “To say that we were excited by the prospect of Shah Rukh Khan joining us for the video is an understatement. He was travelling that week and was quite busy. We are grateful that he took out the time to shoot for the video. We shot Shah Rukh’s part of the video at the Mehboob Studios in Mumbai after midnight.”

A member from the production team says, “We were following up with Shah Rukh for some time. After finishing the shoot, he told us that he was glad to be a part of this tribute video for soldiers.” He adds, “We are still figuring out the dates of the launch. However, we will release the song’s teaser on Independence Day.” The video was initially scheduled to be released on the CRPF Day, however, it was later rescheduled.

The song, Tu Desh Mera, has been mainly sung by Javed Ali, Jubin Nautiyal, Shabab Ali and Kabir Singh but some actors, including Shah Rukh Khan, have also lent their voices to the number. A production member says, “Shah Rukh sang theses lines for the video – Tere liye jiyen marein, vaade jo tujhse kiye poore sab karein. Desh ke rang mein ranga hua, kehta hai ye lahu mera, aanch bhi aaye tirange ko to beh jaaun katra-katra. Tu desh mera, main hu tera…”

The video has been shot at multiple locations across the country, including at CRPF camps and in Srinagar and Gulmarg. Over 150 CRPF jawans are a part of the production.