Rang De Basanti: A Generation Awakens (2-Disc)

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Rang De Basanti is a film that was directed and written by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. The movie stars Aamir Khan, Siddharth Narayan, Kunal Kapoor, Soha Ali Khan, Sharman Joshi, Madhavan, Atul Kulkarni, and Alice Patten. The film received extensive critical accl in India and abroad. It also got a Bafta nomination for the Best Foreign Language Film in 2006. The film was India entry for the Golden Globe and Academy Awards as well. The plot of the movie revolves around a young British documentary filmmaker’s wish to document the Indian freedom struggle as it was experienced by her grandher, who was an officer in the British Indian Army. Sue McKinley arrives in India with her grandher’s diary, from which she has learnt about the story of five Indian freedom fighters, Bhagat Singh, Chandrasekhar Azad, Shivaram Rajguru, Ram Prasad Bismil, and Ashfaqulla Khan. These men, according to late Mr McKinley, were of a different kind, a kind who neither kept silent in the face of death nor cried in pain. With the help of her friend Sonia, Sue manages to recruit five friends of Sonia’s who, after some hesitation, agree to be a part of the documentary. As the filming begins, the men gradually become more interested in it and begin to play their roles with more seriousness. Their mockery and foolishness gives way to a realisation that the life of the revolutionaries wasn’t very different from the ones that we live today. The men realise that their present day conditions are just as bad as when India was under British rule. At this time, tragedy strikes. Sonia’s fiancé, who is a flight lieutenant in the Indian Air Force, is killed in an air c and it is declared that the accident occurred due to the pilot’s error. Apart from feeling miserable at their dear friend’s death, everyone in the group is horrified at such false news, as they know Rathod (the deceased pilot) to be an expert in his field. They believe that Rathod had chosen not to eject himself from the plane so as to save hundreds of other lives which would have been lost had he let the plane c in a populated area. After further investigation, they learn that the aircraft had been made of cheap parts as part of a deal by a corrupt defence minister. Matters turn out to be worse when they find out that it was one of their friend’s hers who was responsible for the materialisation of the deal. They plan to hold a peaceful protest at India Gate, but are beaten with lathis by the . In the confusion, Rathod’s mother is severely injured, causing her to slip into a coma. The friends now realise that there is no place for peaceful means in this country and they decide to resort to violence to achieve their end. The movie ends with a reflection on the kind of end that the freedom fighters had achieved and we are told of the third kind of people that McKinley had written about. Rang De Basanti is available as a DVD in Hindi, with English subtitles. The movie has been rated U (Universal). This DVD was released by Excel Home Entertainment in 2014. It has a runtime of 157 minutes.