Swades: We, the People
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAshutosh Gowariker
Screenplay byAshutosh Gowariker
Ayan Mukerji
Sameer Sharma
Lalit Marathe
Amin Hajee
Charlotte Whitby – Coles
Yashdeep Nigudkar
Story byM. G. Sathya
Ashutosh Gowariker
Dialogue by
Produced byAshutosh Gowariker
StarringShah Rukh Khan
Gayatri Joshi
Kishori Ballal
CinematographyMahesh Aney
Edited byBallu Saluja
Music byA. R. Rahman
Production
company
Ashutosh Gowariker Productions
Distributed byUTV Motion Pictures
Release date
  • 17 December 2004 (2004-12-17)
Running time
195 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget₹25 crore[1]
Box officeest. ₹34.64 crore[2]

Swades: We, the People (transl. Homeland) is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language drama film co-written, directed and produced by Ashutosh Gowariker.[3] The film stars Shah Rukh Khan, Gayatri Joshi and Kishori Ballal while Daya Shankar Pandey, Rajesh Vivek, Lekh Tandon appear in supporting roles.

The plot was based on two episodes of the series Vaapsi on Zee TV's Yule Love Stories (1994–95) which had Gowariker playing the role of Mohan Bhargav.[4] The story of the lead role setting up a micro hydroelectric project to generate electricity was reported to be inspired by the 2003 Kannada film Chigurida Kanasu which was based on the novel of the same name by Jnanapith awardee K. Shivaram Karanth[5][6][7] and Bapu Kuti by Rajni Bakshi.[8] The music and background score was composed by A. R. Rahman, with lyrics penned by Javed Akhtar.

Swades was theatrically released on 17 December 2004, and it opened to rave reviews from critics, with praise for the performances of Khan, Joshi and Ballal, and the story, screenplay, and soundtrack. However, it emerged as a commercial failure at the box office.

At the 50th Filmfare Awards, Swades received 8 nominations, including Best Film, Best Director (Gowarikar) and Best Music Director (Rahman), and won Best Actor (Khan) and Best Background Score (Rahman).

It was dubbed in Tamil as Desam and released on 26 January 2005, coinciding with Indian Republic Day. Despite its commercial failure, Swades is regarded ahead of its time and is now considered a cult classic of Hindi cinema and one of the best films in Shah Rukh Khan's filmography. Shahrukh's performance in this film is regarded as among the best performances of his career.[9][10] The film is owned by Red Chillies Entertainment.[11]

Plot

Mohan Bhargava is a non-resident Indian who works as a Project Manager on the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) program at NASA in the United States. Mohan moved to the U.S. for college studies and kept on living there after his parents in India died in a car accident. He keeps worrying about Kaveri Amma, a nanny at his home in Uttar Pradesh who looked after him during his childhood days. After his parents' death, Kaveri Amma went to live in an old age home in Delhi and eventually lost contact with Mohan. Mohan wishes to go to India and bring Kaveri Amma back with him to the U. S. Due to the recent success of Phase I of his project, he takes a few weeks off and travels to India. He goes to the old age home but learns that Kaveri Amma no longer lives there and went to a village named Charanpur a year ago. Mohan then decides to travel to Charanpur, in Uttar Pradesh.

Mohan decides to rent a recreational vehicle to reach the village fearing that he might not get the required facilities there. Upon reaching Charanpur, he meets Kaveri Amma and learns how his childhood friend Geeta (whom he called "Gitli" in his childhood) brought Kaveri Amma to stay with her after Mohan's parents died. Geeta runs a school in Charanpur and works hard to improve the living conditions of the villagers through education. However, the village is divided largely by caste and religious beliefs. Geeta does not like Mohan's arrival as she thinks that he will take Kaveri Amma back with him to the U. S., leaving her and her younger brother Nandan "Chiku" alone. Kaveri Amma tells Mohan that she needs to get Geeta married first and that it is her responsibility. Geeta believes in women empowerment and gender equality. This attracts Mohan towards Geeta and he too tries to help her by campaigning for education among backward communities and also girls. Mohan befriends villagers Nivaaran and Melaram, and they support him in his campaign. Mohan also wins the attention of Dadaji, a kind village chief.

Slowly love blossoms between Mohan and Geeta. Kaveri Amma asks Mohan to visit a nearby village named Kodi, and collect money from a man named Haridas who owes it to Geeta. Mohan visits Kodi and feels pity seeing Haridas' poor condition, which is such that he is unable to provide his family with meals every day. Haridas tells Mohan that since his caste profession of a weaver wasn't earning him any money, he shifted to tenant farming. But this change in profession led to his ostracization from the village and the villagers even denied him water for his crops. Mohan understands the pathetic situation and realises that many villages in India are still like Kodi. He returns to Charanpur with a heavy heart and decides to do something for the welfare of the village.

Mohan extends his leave by three more weeks. He learns that electricity inconsistency and frequent power cuts are a big problem in Charanpur. He decides to set up a small hydroelectric power generation facility from a nearby water source. Mohan purchases all the equipment needed from his own funds and oversees the building of the power generation unit. The unit works and the village gets sufficient, consistent power from it.

Dadaji's health deteriorates and he passes away. Mohan is repeatedly called by NASA officials as the GPM project he was working on is reaching important stages and he has to return to the U. S. soon. Kaveri Amma tells him that she prefers to stay in Charanpur as it will be difficult for her to adapt to a new country at her age. Geeta also tells him that she will not settle down in another country and she would prefer it if Mohan stay in India with her and Kaveri Amma. Mohan returns to the U. S. with a heavy heart to complete the project. However, in the U. S., he has flashbacks of his time in India and wishes to return. After the successful completion of his project, he leaves U. S. and returns to India with intentions of working at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Center, from where he can also work with NASA. The film ends by showing Mohan staying in the village and wrestling with his friend Nivaaran near a temple.

Cast

  • Shah Rukh Khan as Mohan Bhargav
  • Gayatri Joshi as Geeta "Gitli" (Chiku's elder sister and Mohan's childhood friend/love interest)
  • Kishori Ballal as Kaveri Amma (Mohan's nanny)
  • Rajesh Vivek as Nivaaran Dayal Srivastava (Postman at Charanpur)
  • Lekh Tandon as Dadaji
  • Daya Shankar Pandey as Mela Ram (A eatery owner at Charanpur)
  • Smith Sheth as Nandan "Chiku" (Geeta's younger brother)
  • Bachan Pachehra as Haridas
  • Vishnu Dutt Gaur as Mr. Vishnu Dutt (Charanpur Panchayat Member)
  • Farrukh Jaffar as Panch Fatima Bi
  • Visshwa Badola as Panch Munishwar
  • Bhim Vakani as Panch Narayan
  • Dilip Ambekar as Panch Hariya
  • Raja Awasthi as Panch Gungadin
  • Rahul Vohra as Vinod Raaz
  • Rajesh Balwani as Rahul Sinha
  • Peter Rawley as John Stockton
  • Mayuri Bagade as Book Store Girl
  • Makrand Deshpande as traveller who shows Mohan the way to Charanpur

Production

Inspiration

Swades is inspired by the story of Aravinda Pillalamarri and Ravi Kuchimanchi, the non-resident Indian couple who returned to India and developed a pedal power generator to light remote, off-the-grid village schools.[12][13][14] Gowariker spent considerable time with Pillalamarri and Kuchimanchi, both dedicated Association for India's Development (AID) volunteers. He supposedly visited Bilgaon, an Adivasi village in the Narmada valley, which is the backdrop of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) movement. The people of Bilgaon are credited with doing 200 person-days of shramdaan (community service) to make their village energy self-sufficient. The Bilgaon project is recognised as a model for replication by the Government of Maharashtra.

The film was reported to be inspired by two episodes of the series titled Vaapsi on Zee TV's Yule Love Stories (1993–95). The story of the lead role setting up a micro hydro electric project to generate electricity was reported to be inspired by the Kannada novel Chigurida Kanasu by K. Shivaram Karanth[5][6][7] and Bapu Kuti by Rajni Bakshi.[8]

Themes

Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson, Tushar Gandhi, noted the theme of Gandhism in the film.[15] The name of the main character portrayed by Shah Rukh Khan is Mohan, which was Gandhi's birth name (Mohandas or "Mohan"). The film opens with the quotation:

Hesitating to act because the whole vision might not be achieved, or because others do not yet share it, is an attitude that only hinders progress.

— Mahatma Gandhi

Gowariker tries to address the lack of scientific temperament and widespread ignorance among the rural folks through the energetic number "Ye Tara Wo Tara", where Mohan is seen encouraging the children to experience the fascinating world of stars through his telescope. In a symbolic manner, the song rejects the defunct divisions of caste and class and at the same time, through its protagonist, tries to instill in the audience an appreciation of curiosity and observation.

Casting and filming

Panorama of Menawali, the village in Maharashtra where Swades was shot

Gowariker initially offered Mohan's role to Aamir Khan (who worked in Gowariker's 2001 film Lagaan), but he rejected it because he found the story to be weak. Mohan's role was then offered to Hrithik Roshan, who refused after reading the script.[16] Gowariker contemplated casting R. Madhavan before offering Mohan's role to Shah Rukh, who finally accepted it after listening to the story and he started crying during the story's narration.[17] Bhanu Athaiya, an Oscar winner for Gandhi (1982), was the costume designer for the film.

Swades was the first Indian film to be shot inside the NASA headquarters and inside the NASA research center at the Launch Pad 39A of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.[18][19] The rainfall monitoring satellite known as the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) in the film is an actual NASA mission and was launched in 2014.[20][21][22] A major part of the film was shot in Menawali, Maharashtra.[23][24]

Reception

Critical reception

The film received highly critical acclaim and went on to become a cult classic, and Khan's performance as Mohan Bhargava is considered one of his best to date.[25]

Subhash K. Jha of Indiatimes Movies gave the film 4.5 stars out of 5 and said, "Swades is a unique experiment with grassroots realism. It is so politically correct in its propagandist message that initially you wonder if the Government of India funded the director's dream."

Mayank Shekhar from Mid-Day gave it 4 stars, stating, "I cannot think of a better film for the longest that deserved a stronger recommendation for both touring cinemas of India's villages, and plush multiplexes of Mumbai or Manhattan."

Jitesh Pillai of the Sunday Times of India gave the film 4 stars and said "After Lagaan, what? The answer's blowing in the wind. Swades! Here's the verdict: This is a gutsy and outstanding film. Welcome back to real, solid film-making." He added, "Swades is undoubtedly the No. 1 movie of the year."[26]

Shradha Sukumaran of Mid-Day gave it 3.5 stars and said, "At the end of it, Swades is a far braver film than Lagaan. It could have hit the high note – if it hadn't tried so hard."

Avijit Ghosh wrote in The Telegraph, "With its gentle humour, the film acts as an entertaining vehicle for social change. And hopefully, it will do more for positive nationalism than the Union government's Directorate of Audio Visual Publicity (DAVP) ads ever will."[27]

Box office

Swades earned ₹15.25 crore (US$1.9 million) net box office in India.[28][29] In the overseas market, the film made $2,790,000.[30] It had a lifetime worldwide gross of ₹34.64 crore (US$4.3 million). The film topped the Chennai box office on its opening weekend.[31]

Soundtrack

The song "Dekho Naa" is a modified version of the song "Kichchu Tha" from the film, Baba (2002).

Swades
Soundtrack album by
A. R. Rahman
Released10 November 2004
RecordedPanchathan Record Inn
GenreFeature film soundtrack
LabelT-Series
ProducerA. R. Rahman
A. R. Rahman chronology
'New'
(2002)		 Swades
(2004)		 Kisna: The Warrior Poet
(2005)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Planet Bollywood link

All lyrics are written by Javed Akhtar; all music is composed by A. R. Rahman

No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."Yeh Taara Woh Taara"Udit Narayan, Master Vignesh, Baby Pooja7:13
2."Saanwariya Saanwariya"Alka Yagnik5:17
3."Yun Hi Chala Chala"Udit Narayan, Kailash Kher, Hariharan7:28
4."Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera"A. R. Rahman6:28
5."Aahista Aahista"Udit Narayan, Sadhana Sargam6:35
6."Pal Pal Hai Bhaari"Madhushree, Vijay Prakash6:50
7."Dekho Na"Alka Yagnik, Udit Narayan5:46
8."Pal Pal Hai Bhaari" (Flute)Naveen3:38
9."Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera" (Shehnai)Madhukar Dhumal4:00

On 27 March 2021, members of United States Navy Band sang "Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera" for Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the Ambassador of India to the United States and United States Navy Chief of Naval Operations at a special dinner event.[32] The video of the band members singing surfaced on Twitter and received praise and nostalgia from Shahrukh Khan, A. R. Rahman and netizens alike.[33][34]

Tamil version

The Tamil soundtrack under the title Desam[35] was composed by A.R. Rahman. All Lyrics were written by Vaali. According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 13,00,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the eleventh highest-selling of the year.[36]

TitleSinger(s)Length
"Thirukona Moolam"S.P. Balasubrahmanyam, Master Vignesh, Baby Pooja7:13
"Kaaviriya Kaaviriya"Madhushree, Alka Yagnik (humming)5:17
"Unnai Kelai"T. L. Maharajan, Hariharan7:28
"Unthan Desathin Kural"A. R. Rahman6:28
"Thai Sonna"K.J. Yesudas, Madhushree6:35
"Mazhai Mega Vanna"K. S. Chithra, Srinivas6:50
"Kettenaa Naan"Mohammed Aslam, Sadhana Sargam5:46
"Unthan Desathin Kural" (Shehnai)Madhukar T. Dhumal4:00

Awards

Shah Rukh Khan at Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida. Khan earned critical acclaim for his portrayal of a NASA Scientist in this film
National Film Awards
Global Indian Film Awards
Zee Cine Awards
  • Best Director (Critics) – Ashutosh Gowariker
  • Best Female Debut – Gayatri Joshi
  • Best Story – Ashutosh Gowariker
  • Best Sound Re-recording – Hitendra Ghosh
Star Screen Awards
Stardust Awards
Bollywood Movie Awards
  • Best Female Debut – Gayatri Joshi
Film Café Awards
  • Best Actor – Shahrukh Khan[38]
50th Filmfare Awards:

Won

Nominated

Legacy

The character, Mohan Bhargav, played by Khan, was reprised again in Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva. Director Ayan Mukerji confirmed that it is the same character from Swades.[39][40][41]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Box Office: Crash of the big 'uns". Filmfare. January 2001. Archived from the original on 1 March 2005. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  2. ↑ "Swades". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 21 November 2023. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
  3. ↑ "Meet Aravinda and Ravi, The Inspiration Behind Shahrukh Khan's Movie 'Swades'". indiatimes.com. 17 December 2018. Archived from the original on 5 April 2019. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  4. ↑ "SRK's 'Swades' was inspired by Ashutosh Gowariker's show, where he played Mohan?". India Today. Archived from the original on 7 September 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Top ten Kannada films to have been remade". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 4 September 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  6. 1 2 "Eight Bollywood movies that are actually remakes of South Indian films". 20 June 2019. Archived from the original on 21 June 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  7. 1 2 "Can't thank Ashutosh Gowariker enough for Swades: Shah Rukh Khan", Indian Express, 17 December 2016, archived from the original on 25 August 2019, retrieved 25 August 2019 – via PTI
  8. 1 2 "Bet You Didn't Know – the real story behind Ashutosh Gowariker's Swades!". 22 October 2009. Archived from the original on 25 August 2019. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
  9. ↑ "Lost in Translation – Part 1/2". Filmfare. 8 September 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  10. ↑ Deepak Mahaan (4 August 2011). "Arts / Cinema : Intoxicated with second love!". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 30 August 2011. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  11. ↑ "Red Chillies Entertainments". redchillies.com. Archived from the original on 6 October 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  12. ↑ "The Real Swadesis: Aravinda and Ravi". Archived from the original on 7 January 2008. Retrieved 25 December 2007.
  13. ↑ "Bilgaon Village: From Darkness to Light". AID Austin. Archived from the original on 17 January 2008. Retrieved 25 December 2007.
  14. ↑ "The Bilgaon model". FRONTLINE (THE HINDU). Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 25 December 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  15. ↑ Jha, Subhash K.; Service, Indo-Asian News (19 November 2015). "\'I\'m pleased with Hirani\'s Gandhigiri,\' says Gandhi\'s grandson". Sify.com. Archived from the original on 21 November 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  16. ↑ "Ash, Hrithik ready to go back in time". The Times of India. 11 October 2006. Archived from the original on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  17. ↑ "It's silly to slot filmmakers: Madhavan". Hindustan Times. 6 September 2005. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  18. ↑ "Swades". BBC. 2004. Archived from the original on 3 April 2009. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  19. ↑ "Radio Sargam Interview: Shah Rukh Khan!". Radio Sargam. Archived from the original on 16 August 2007. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  20. ↑ "Lights, Camera, Liftoff!". NASA. Archived from the original on 18 February 2008. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  21. ↑ "Global Precipitation Measurement". NASA. Archived from the original on 5 September 2008. Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  22. ↑ "GPM Launch Information". NASA. 22 January 2014. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  23. ↑ "Error". epaper.timesofindia.com. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  24. ↑ "The village where Shah Rukh Khan's Swades was shot". 19 August 2009.
  25. ↑ Verma, Sukanya. "10 Best Bollywood Movies of the Decade". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 21 January 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
  26. ↑ Pillai, Jitesh (22 December 2004). "Swades". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 21 February 2023. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  27. ↑ "A film that dares". The Telegraph. Calcutta, India. 24 December 2004. Archived from the original on 24 January 2005.
  28. ↑ Boxofficeindia.com. Web.archive.org (14 October 2013). Retrieved on 2015-03-30.
  29. ↑ Boxofficeindia.com. Web.archive.org (26 September 2013). Retrieved on 2015-03-30.
  30. ↑ "Top Lifetime Grossers Overseas". Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 28 July 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  31. ↑ "Chennai Box Office – sify.com (1970)". sify.com. Archived from the original on 9 September 2017.
  32. ↑ Taranjit Singh Sandhu [@SandhuTaranjitS] (27 March 2021). "'ये वो बंधन है जो कभी टूट नहीं सकता! This is a friendship bond that cannot be broken ever.' 🇮🇳🇺🇸 US Navy singing a popular Hindi tune @USNavyCNO 's dinner last night! https://t.co/hfzXsg0cAr" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021 – via Twitter.
  33. ↑ A.R.Rahman #99Songs 😷 [@arrahman] (28 March 2021). "Swades rules for ever🌹@AshGowariker #sharukhkhan @Javedakhtarjadu https://t.co/DGgN5xRsEp" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021 – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  34. ↑ Shah Rukh Khan [@iamsrk] (29 March 2021). "Thank u for sharing this sir. How lovely. Git all nostalgic about the time spent making this beautiful film and belief sung in the song. Thanx @AshGowariker @RonnieScrewvala @arrahman & everyone who made it possible. https://t.co/rFRKcHTDCg" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021 – via Twitter.
  35. ↑ Kamini Mathai (2009). A.R. Rahman: The Musical Storm. Penguin Books India. pp. 256–. ISBN 978-0-670-08371-8.
  36. ↑ "Music Hits 2000–2009 (Figures in Units)". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 15 February 2008.
  37. ↑ Suhasini, Lalitha (19 July 2005). "Destiny's child". The Indian Express. Pune Newsline. Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  38. ↑ "Film Cafe: Winners". BBC Radio. Archived from the original on 12 December 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2008.
  39. ↑ Hazra, Priya (19 September 2022). "SRK's Character In 'Brahmastra' Is Actually Mohan Bhargav From 'Swadesh, Confirms Ayan Mukerji". ScoopWhoop. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  40. ↑ Samaiya, Praneet (21 September 2022). "Ayan Mukerji Confirms That Shah Rukh Khan's Character In Brahmastra Is Mohan Bhargav From Swades". Cine-tales.com. Archived from the original on 12 December 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  41. ↑ Pall, Omair (18 September 2022). "Ayan Mukerji Confirms Shah Rukh Khan's Mohan Bhargav From 'Brahmastra' Is Not A Coincidence!". Mashable. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.

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