'Gadar' director Anil Sharma: Film had elements of Ramayana

With Sunny Deol’s 'Gadar' clocking 20 years, the director says the movie was inspired by Indian epic, making it relevant even today

From the song, 'Main nikla gaddi leke' to the scene where Sunny Deol uproots a hand-pump in a fit of rage, viewers couldn’t get enough of 'Gadar: Ek Prem Katha' on its release in 2001. Some may argue that the Hindi film industry’s creative sensibilities have changed dramatically since then. But as the Deol and Ameesha Patel-starrer clocks 20 years on June 15, director Anil Sharma believes the film is relevant in this age. “I can make the film without any changes today, and it will be a bigger success. It’s a realistic film, and the youth will connect with it. If you ask me, 'Gadar' has elements of the Ramayana. [In the epic], Lord Ram went to Lanka to get Sita; we have followed a similar plot in our film, which is why we identify with the story even after all these years.”

At the box-office, the drama had clashed with Aamir Khan’s ambitious 'Lagaan' (2001), which went on to be nominated at the Oscars for the Best Foreign Language Film. Despite locking horns, the two films had held their own, becoming the year’s biggest blockbusters. “So many people watched 'Lagaan' and 'Gadar' the same day, one after the other,” remembers Sharma, whose film will air on Zee Bollywood.

Anil Sharma

Over the past few years, there has been chatter about a sequel to 'Gadar'. The director says they are trying to develop a fitting plot. “The day I crack the right plot that will offer a combination of drama and realism, I will start working on the sequel. My son Utkarsh, who played Sunny’s son Jeeta in the film, has grown up, so there is scope for a second instalment.”

Also Read: Salman Khan inspired Anil Sharma's son to act

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