Independence Day is tomorrow, and for sure all of the movie channels will be flooded with films based on Independence Day themes. Some of them are telecasted so often that we know exactly which ones will be on like Rang De Basanti, Gandhi, Border, some of the various films on Bhagat Singh, Bose and more.
It is almost a given that either of these movies will be broadcasted on Independence Day considering they all deal with subjects like patriotism, duty towards the country, famous people who played an important part during our freedom struggle.
But in case you are looking for something new and different, allow us to bring to you this 1964 film called Haqeeqat.
Read More: Sandesh To Soldiers: Finally Something Through Which We Can Connect With Our Army
What Is Haqeeqat?
Haqeeqat is a 1964 Hindi war film directed by Chetan Anand is set against the backdrop of the Sino-Indian War of 1962. The film starred Dharmendra, Balraj Sahni, Vijay Anand and more and is the film to give us the evergreen patriotic song ‘ab tumhare hawale watan saathiyon’ sung by Mohammed Rafi.
The film even won the National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film in 1965.
But what makes the film, even after being in black and white and almost 50 years old is the cinematography and the way it handled the topic at hand.
The film presented the stark reality of the ‘jawan’ life and how many sacrifices they have to make and the daily danger they put their lives in just for the love of their country.
The time of the Sino-Indian war was a difficult one, but Haqeeqat brought forth a new point of view, that from the ‘jawans’ themselves and what all they had to go through.
Along with govt. assistance, this movie was of one of the first Bollywood movies to be shot in Ladakh and it provided a visual take of the harsh weather conditions in India, allowing the common citizens of India to see exactly what all the soldiers of their army had to go through.
This in a way allowed the common public to better empathise with their army ‘jawans’ and have a greater respect for their selfless work.
Why Is This Film Still Relevant?
Haqeeqat might be almost half a century old but one cannot deny that it still remains relevant even in today’s time.
The relations between China and India never really smoothed over and till date remain just on the verge of being hostile.
One can take the recent border issue where India had opposed the building of a road by a construction party from China’s People’s Liberation Army through the Doklam plateau that is in the Indian region. India accused China of attempting to move and reposition the India-China-Bhutan tri-junction point to the south.
In response to this Beijing has blamed Indian troops and New Delhi of trying to encroach over into Chinese territory. This stand-off at the Doklam region has been going on since mid-June this year.
Or one could take the crumbling relations that India has with its other neighbor Pakistan regarding, on well practically everything under the sun.
With such strained relations around us, and with patriotism being at its peak during Independence Day, this movie seems to be the perfect pick.
The best part is that you don’t have to search online for this film, you can watch ‘Haqeeqat’ on Zee Classic on 15th August 2017 aka Independence Day at 9 a.m.
https://youtu.be/W9_V-H29tOU
Image Credits: Google Images
Other Recommendations:
http://edtimes.in/2017/08/china-uttarakhand/
The cause of the war was a dispute over the sovereignty of the widely separated Aksai Chin and Arunachal Pradesh border regions. Aksai Chin, claimed by India to belong to Kashmir and by China to be part of Xinjiang, contains an important road link that connects the Chinese regions of Tibet and Xinjiang. China’s construction of this road was one of the triggers of the conflict.