Shoojit Sircar’s upcoming film Sardar Udham pays tribute to an unsung hero — Sardar Udham Singh, an Indian revolutionary, who assassinated Michael O’Dwyer in London (1940), to avenge the Jallianwala Bagh massacre (1919). The former British colonial official was the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab (British India) at the time.

O’Dwyer had said the killing of hundreds of protesters during a demonstration at Jallianwala Bagh in the city of Amritsar, Punjab, was justified. Actor Vicky Kaushal portrays Sardar Udham in the film that premieres on Amazon Prime Video on October 16. In an interview with Bombay Times, Shoojit Sircar opens up on his much-awaited film that he has been meaning to make for the past 21 years!

I first visited Jallianwala Bagh in 1999. I was brutally affected. Shaheed Udham Singh ko itnay kam log kyun jaante hai? He was a courageous man, who travelled the world to get to London. I came to Mumbai in 2000 to make this film. I didn’t have money, and no actors knew me. Like Udham Singh, I waited for 21 years to realise my goal of making this film and it was shocking to know that people are unaware of him. That’s the problem of modern times. We are ignorant of who we are in this free world. We tend to forget about our past. Ronnie (Producer Ronnie Lahiri) and I made sure to add that thought in the trailer itself. The world should not forget Udham’s message. It’s unfortunate and sad that he is forgotten, but I hope I am able to bring forth his courageous act.

You are absolutely right. Sometimes, revisiting an incident is bound to reopen old wounds. My idea of making this film was for people to know that Udham was an ordinary person, a normal human being. We should not forget that there’s a revolutionary in everyone. As a filmmaker, your integrity and take on an issue is extremely important. First and foremost, are you a responsible citizen? The viewers by now know my sensibility and treatment. It all depends on who is making the film and why. I never compromise on my cinematic narrative.

It was difficult. I went to various libraries, met many historians, writers, professors and referred to the statements of the Jallianwala Bagh survivors.

I was moved by their pain and sacrifices to the extent that I had to tell their story. Those statements were with the Hunter commission and the Congress report. The information is there, but it’s scattered.

My first choice was Irrfan Khan for playing Sardar Udham. Both of us wanted to make this film for a very long time. It’s not easy to cast someone when you have lived with the thought of Irrfan doing the film. Vicky came into the picture much later. I had seen only one film of Vicky and that was Neeraj Ghaywan’s Masaan. It was beautifully made and Vicky was able to convey the innocence and turbulence in his mind calmly. I needed someone who could do that. He has integrity. Being a Punjabi, he’s closer to the sentiment, language and pain of the character and knows what Punjab has gone through. All these factors led me to him and also the fact that he could play all ages — 20, 30 and 39 convincingly. He managed it quite well.

When I am conceiving a film and the writing part is on, you are constantly evolving. I have a habit of picking theme music or anything that transports me to that world.

Music gives me food for thought. That could be anything. In this case, I shared the music with Vicky. I do it to acclimatize actors to my world and way of thinking. That’s me sharing my emotion behind making the film with them. There’s no fixed routine as such, but I try to take my actors through the emotional journey that I underwent.

Even as molestations across the country continue to grab headlines and news hour debates reiterate the 'No means no' catchphrase from his last release, the courtroom-drama, Pink; Shoojit Sircar has quietly started work on his next film. It revolves around our Independence struggle and a long-forgotten martyr, Udham Singh. The filmmaker reveals that he has been researching the subject for years and when he came to Mumbai, this was the first film he wanted to make.

“During my theatre days in Delhi, back in 1995 when I was still studying, I would go with a group to Punjab which was just coming out of a period of turmoil, and sing songs of communal harmony. I visited Amritsar and the Jallianwala Bagh then and was greatly inspired by the story of this fiery revolutionary who shot dead Sir Michael O'Dwyer, the former Lieutenant Governor of Punjab in British India, in London to avenge the massacre of 1919,“ informs Shoojit.

He admits he's been toying with the idea of making this film for years but every time he planned something, a pre-Independence film would come up and he'd push his film to later. “I guess every film has its own destiny. But now the time has come to remind the people of our country about those behind the freedom we are enjoying today. Udham Singh's name doesn't find a mention in our textbooks, he was one of our silent heroes, but his daring and sacrifice marked a turning point in India's history. After Bhagat Singh, he was one of our greatest martyrs and his vision for the country was very contemporary and relevant even today,“ asserts the filmmaker who's scouting for a leading man who can play this heroic role which spans 30-40 years and will bring the Shaheed to life.

He has already started with some of the background scenes. The main shooting will begin post-monsoon and he'll be filming in Delhi, parts of Punjab and Kashmir, Kolkata and London where the assassination took place. He plans to release it by year-end or early next year. He is also collaborating on another screenplay with his writer, Juhi Chaturvedi, which he describes as a simple, young love story revolving around an issue which he is reluctant to divulge. This film will be shot alongside the Udham Singh biopic and Shoojit will be directing both films.

Who was Udham Singh?
Born Sher Singh on December 26, 1899, in Sunam in the Sangrur district of Punjab, he lost his father, Sardar Tehal Singh Jammu, early and grew up in an orphanage in Amritsar. There he was administered the Sikh initiatory rites and rechristened Udham Singh.

On April 10, 1919, many local leaders, including Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew, were arrested under the Rowlatt Act. Protestors were fired on by British troops, precipitating a riot during which British banks were burned and four Europeans were killed. On April 13, over 20,000 unarmed protestors assembled in Jallianwala Bagh. Udham and his friends were serving water when Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered his troops to fire without warning. Around 1500 people were killed and over 1200 wounded. The governor of Punjab, Michael O'Dwyer, supported the massacre, and Udham jumped into revolutionary politics, organising Indians overseas towards overthrowing colonial rule in India. In 1927, he returned to India on Bhagat Singh's orders, bringing 25 associates, revolvers and ammunition. He as arrested for possession of unlicensed arms, prosecuted and sentenced to five years in prison.

Upon his release from prison in 1931, despite close surveillance by the Punjab police, Udham made his way to Kashmir and escaped to Germany. In 1934, he reached London and on March 13, 1940, entered the Caxton Hall where O'Dwyer was scheduled to speak at a joint meeting of the East India Association and the Central Asian Society, with a revolver in his jacket pocket. At the end of the meeting, he shot O'Dwyer twice, killing him immediately. He didn't attempt to flee, was arrested and charged with the murder.

While awaiting trial in Brixton Prison, he went on a 42-day hunger strike and had to be forcibly fed. On June 4, 1940, his trial commenced at the Central Criminal Court in Old Bailey. Udham insisted Dwyer deserved to die and it had taken him 21 years to do the job. Now, he was not scared to die for his motherland. He was convicted, sentenced to death and on July 31, 1940, hanged at Pentonvillle Prison and buried there.

In 1974, his remains were exhumed and repatriated to India. He was cremated in his birthplace, Sunam, and a part of his ashes sealed in an urn at Jallianwala Bagh.