Aarushi Nigam (BOMBAY TIMES; December 8, 2017)

We love our movies. And we love our armed forces. But the powers of association alone are not enough to make us love our movies on the armed forces. While almost every major actor has played a soldier at least once, and a few others have made it a career regular, only a small percentage of those films is actually about the forces (and not a plot device to complicate a love story), and even a smaller percentage has clicked with audiences. Where is our blockbuster war film? Or one that swept away the National Awards and the box office? While tributes pour in for our men and women in uniform from all quarters including the film industry today, the best kind of tribute to our forces from the film industry – a defining, universally-appreciated war drama – is still missing. And as an audience, while the service and sacrifice of our uniformed forces might ignite our collective passions, the same can’t be said of consuming that topic on the big screen.

THE POST-WAR YEARS AND CINEMA
The conflicts of 1962, 1965 and 1971 inspired several films that rode the wave of nationalistic sentiment sweeping through the country at the time. Haqeeqat (1964) and Border (1997), based on the Sino-Indian conflict and the 1971 war with Pakistan respectively, are perhaps our only two war films that can be unquestionably called successful, in terms of winning over both critics and audiences. Many others, like Hindustan Ki Kasam (1973) and Vijeta (1982), will find mention among the better films on the forces to be made, and are remembered till today even though they failed to pull in audiences at the time. The 2017 film The Ghazi Attack, about the mysterious sinking of the PNS Ghazi in the 1971 war, suffered its own mysterious sinking — it earned positive reviews, but not box office numbers. 1971 (2007) might have won the National Award for Best Hindi Feature Film, but mention it to most and you wouldn’t get an immediate recollection.

The Kargil War, the first to be fought in the 24-hour news cycle that brought the war to our living rooms and nationalistic fervour out on our streets, failed to inspire the same zeal on the silver screen. The long-winding and multi-heroed L.O.C. Kargil could keep neither the viewers nor the critics glued, even as real-life accounts from the war, retold in countless Facebook posts, news articles and books,continue to find takers till today.

FICTIONAL CONFLICTS ON THE SILVER SCREEN
There have been other films with fictional stories set in the backdrop of real conflicts, but most haven’t come even close to being successful. The most enduring image from the 2011 Mausam might be of Shahid Kapoor in his Air Force uniform, but the image is all that still remains in audience memory. Others, including Param Vir Chakra (1995), Agnipankh (2004), Deewaar – Let’s Bring Our Heroes Home (2004) and Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo (2004), haven’t survived the test of time barely gone by since they released.

Ketan Anand (MUMBAI MIRROR; January 7, 2015)

This is in regard to the article on Haqeeqat which appeared in Mumbai Mirror on January 6. I would like to point out that the colour version of Haqeeqat has never been shown at any festival or public screening.

Also, I have not cut M S Sathyu and Priya Rajvansh's name from the title credits of neither the black-and-white original nor the colour version.

M S Sathyu has not seen the colour version even in a private screening. So with due respect and apology to him, I would like to say that his memory has failed him.

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; January 6, 2015)

In 1962, China attacked India over a disputed 3,2225-kilometre-long Himalayan border, launching simultaneous offensives in Ladakh and across the MacMohan Line on October 20. Chinese troops captured Rezang la and Tawang before ceasefire was declared on November 20.

The Chinese withdraw from India, but Chetan Anand, with memories of the first Sino-Indian War still fresh on his mind, arrived in Ladakh a year later with an idea of making India's first war movie.

"This was the first time a movie camera had travelled to Ladakh and overwhelmed by the scenic beauty around us we exposed over a lakh of footage only to return to Mumbai and realise that we didn't have a story," recalls M S Sathyu.

Anand quickly developed a story around a small platoon of Indian soldiers believed dead who are rescued by Ladakhi tribesmen and a young captain, Bahadur Singh who dies, with his girlfriend, holding the Chinese at bay so his comrades can retreat to safety. But they are killed too. "When I asked Chetan saab if we were going back to shoot in Ladakh, he surprised me by asking me to recreate the hilly terrain in a city studio," says Sathyu.

Working from the photographs they had taken, he built Ladakh in Mehboob Studio with an artist, Yusuf, to paint the backgrounds. Sathyu got the Filmfare Award for Best Art Direction for his true-to-life sets.

While shooting Haqeeqat in Jammu & Kashmir Sathyu remembers that there were no pucca roads, just tracks in the sand and one day the jeep he was in, drove straight into Chinese territory. "The jeep behind tried to signal but since there was no barbed wire, we crossed over and were met with sten gun and machine gunfire. Fortunately, we were pulled out in the nick of time by the soldiers who were with us," says the art director.

Balraj Sahni almost got swept away by flash floods while crossing an icy river. Once again, it was the jawans who jumped to his rescue. Anand had many real soldiers in his cast, including the Ladakh Scouts who played the Chinese. Amongst them, it was not difficult for Dharmendra, who played Captain Bahadur Singh to pass off as a dashing officer.

"He was a funny fellow. One evening, he got drunk and went missing. We went looking for him and found him sleeping peacefully in a real jawan's tent at the Bartal camp," Sathyu laughs. Haqeeqat launched many careers, including that of Sanjay Khan, Sudhir, singer Bhupinder as an actor and Priya Rajvansh who played Angmo, Bhadhur Singh's girlfriend. Sathyu remembers her as a tall, beautiful girl who in her cap, costume and tribal jwellery convincingly passed off as a Ladakhi girl. "The role didn't demand great histrionics, she just had to look the part and sing a song filmed on a set I had created in the studio and wasn't happy with," he says candidly.

Picturising a song on a closed set didn't pose as big a challenge as filming a war sequence with real bullets. Still, there weren't any mishaps except one when a persistent junior artiste, Dagru, finally got himself a bit role by turning up at Mehboob Studio everyday. "He was placed on a bunker three feet up and when hit by a bullet had to tumble down. He did, with a somersault, and then lay on the floor with a smile on his face. He had broken his spine,"says Sathyu.

He rushed him to Nanavati Hospital but despite all our efforts, he died. "We didn't know where he was from. After a long search we finally learnt that he had a wife in a village near Satara and the body was sent there," says Sathyu.

The film opened at the First International Film Festival of India in New Delhi. It was premiered at Odeon cinema. The then President of India, Dr Radhakrishnan, the chiefs of the Defence Forces and Bollywood bigwigs like Prithviraj Kapoor and Raj Kapoor were present on the occasion. Sathyu has no memories of the premiere but he remembers walking out of a screening of the colorised version at IFFI in Goa a few years ago.

"The starkness of black-and-white which gave the film its classic touch is lost. Scindler's List was made at a time when enough colour was available, yet Steven Spielberg shot it in black-and-white," he points out. "By colourising Haqeeqat digitally, Chetan saab's boys have ruined the film. Following my objections they dropped my name from the title credits, and Priya's too."

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; August 12, 2014)

Kaifi Azmi had strayed into Hindi cinema to earn his bread and butter but his verses quickly established him as a lyricist par excellence. He walked into Guru Dutt's Kaagaz Ke Phool after Sahir Ludhianvi stormed out of the film owing to creative differences with composer SD Burman, and penned the unforgettable Waqt ne kiya kya haseen sitam. Ramesh Saigal's Shola Aur Shabnam had two other memorable tracks, Jeet hi lenge baazi hum tum and Jaane kya dhoondti rehti hain. But unfortunately for him, these films were not commercialy successful and the superstitious industry dubbed Kaifi talented but "unlucky".

Then, one fine day, Chetan Anand walked into the lyricist's home and asked him to write the songs for, Haqeeqat, his film based on the 1962 Indo-Sino war. The lyricist reminded him about his reputation and Chetan responded with a smile, "Mere baare mein bhi yehi kehte hain ki achcha filmmaker hai par sitare achche nain hain. May be together we can turn our fortunes around."

The 1964 war film which won the National Award for Best Feature Film, was a turning point in Kaifi's career and is regarded as a classic till today.

Later, when he asked Chetan why he'd turned to him, Kaifi was told that he wanted a lyricist who had been exposed to the freedom struggle and understood the true meaning of patriotism. Kaifi had abandoned his studies in Persian and Urdu during the Quit India Movement in 1942 to joined the nationalist struggle. His experiences translated beautifully into the evergreen Kar chale hum fida jaan o tan saathiyon."It's such a beautiful song, enhanced by Madan Mohan's music and Chetan saab's picturisation. It gives me gooseflesh every time I listen to it," sighs Kaifi's actress daughter, Shabana Azmi.

She recalls how when her father was writing the songs, Chetan would walk into their house in the morning and take a seat opposite her father on the verandah. "He would briefly sketch out the situation and tell abba what he wanted. Then, they'd quietly sit together, barely exchanging words, simply experiencing the creative process together, before Chetan saab left with a 'chalta hoon' while abba continued to ruminate till he came up with the perfect song. After a long time, abba had found a filmmaker who understood poetry and respected words," says Shabana.

After Haqeeqat, Chetan, Kaifi and Madan Mohan became a team that gave us several other gems but Kar chale hum vida remained Hindi cinema's definitive patriotic tracks.

Shabana recalls that when Javed Akhtar was writing the songs for JP Dutta's Border, she saw her husband get apprehensive while putting pen to paper because he knew the standards he had to live up to.

Shabana's favourite song from Haqeeqat is Zara si aahat hoti hai toh dil sochta hai, kahin yeh woh to nahin. She had sung the difficult Lata Mangeshkar composition frequently when at the FTII in Pune and even included it in an album of Kaifi's songs. It was one of Lata's favourite compositions too. "Kaifi saab is known as a progressive writer and a revolutionary poet, but he was also immensely romantic and you see this quality reflected in lines like shakl phirti hai nigahon mein wohi pyaari si, meri nas nas mein machalne lagi chingari si, chhoo gayi jism mera, kiske daaman ki hawa kahin yeh woh to nahin," she warbles.

Shabana's just as affected when Mohd. Rafi's voice bringing out the poignancy in lines like Zinda rehne ke mausam bahut hai magar, jaan dene ki rut roz aati nahin... baandh lo apne sar pe kafan saathiyon and remembers her father as a true patriot. "After the Babri demolition and the Mumbai riots, Javed and I were on the streets rehabilitating victims and started getting threat calls," she reminisces.

In a panic, Javed's kids, Farhan and Zoya, were sent to Yash Chopra's house for a few days and her parents, Kaifi and Shaukat Kaifi, to her brother Baba Azmi's place. But two days later, Kaifi was back in Janki Kutir. And when Mahesh Bhatt tried to warn him about the dangers of staying alone, he told him that after the Partition he had the choice of moving to Pakistan but chose to stay in India.

"This is my country, I have taken part in it's struggle for independence, no harm can come to me here," he told Bhatt.

Today, Chetan Anand, Kaifi Azmi and Madan Mohan are all gone.

But Kar chale hum fida unfailingly plays every Independence Day and leaves Shabana and so many others misty-eyed.