Twenty-five years after its release, Gadar continues to hold a firm place in the memory of Hindi cinema audiences, and Ameesha Patel believes the reasons are not difficult to explain.
In a conversation with Variety India, Patel described the film as “a gut-wrenching love story that’s so raw and sincere. You cannot find a single flaw in it.”
A difficult first day and a role meant for a seasoned actor
Patel recalled that her first day on set was “in equal measures spectacular and scary.” She was simultaneously filming Kaho Na... Pyaar Hai at the time, and Gadar’s shooting began with the post-interval sequences, which she described as particularly demanding for a newcomer.
The opening scene involved a confrontation with her on-screen father Ashraf Ali, played by the late Amrish Puri, set in a Lahore home. Patel said the challenge was inhabiting Sakina’s full arc without having filmed the earlier portions: “The role of Sakina was meant to be done by an actor who was 10-15 films old and had spent enough time facing the camera.”
Sunny Deol on set: “He was my biggest cheerleader”
Despite the pressures of playing a demanding role early in her career, Patel said working with Sunny Deol, seventeen years her senior, was a reassuring experience. “Sunny Deol is the gentlest of souls,” she said, “He helped me no matter how many retakes I needed. It was a completely fun vibe where we’d steal each other’s food and we were always laughing and joking.”
When Kaho Na... Pyaar Hai released during the filming of Gadar’s third or fourth major schedule and became a success, Deol was, she said, “my biggest cheerleader on the sets.”
A personal connection to Partition
The film’s Partition backdrop carried particular resonance for Patel, whose maternal grandfather migrated from Lahore and Karachi to India. Her paternal grandmother, Sushila Gokhale-Patel, established Gandhi museums at Mani Bhawan in Mumbai and Gandhi Bhawan in New Delhi, donating both to the government. Her paternal grandfather, Rajni Patel, served as a Congress president and was imprisoned during the freedom struggle.
Her paternal grandmother had initially opposed her entry into the film industry, but changed her position once she heard the subject of Gadar.
Gadar 2 (2023) demonstrated that the film’s audience had not diminished, and Patel credits the durability of Tara and Sakina’s story to something elemental: “It’s a story of a man’s undying love for his wife and family, that he’s ready to rip apart anything, including his soul, for her. It’s such a gut-wrenching love story that anyone would want to be them.”
As Gadar marks its 25th anniversary, Patel’s memories offer a glimpse into the making of a film that continues to enjoy lasting popularity with audiences across generations.
More Pages: Gadar - Ek Prem Katha Box Office Collection , Gadar - Ek Prem Katha Movie Review
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