Oscar-nominated movie, ‘Laagan’, the underdog tale of how a group of villagers beat their British overlords through a game of cricket to stop them from increasing the taxes on them, marked 21 years of its release on Wednesday.
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And the movie is rumoured to be making a comeback - this time on the stage. Reports abound several leading producers from the UK have requested for the rights from Aamir Khan Productions and a final decision will be made soon regarding the West End Theatre. A source was quoted by Indian media as saying: "Aamir Khan's team is yet to make a final decision about it. The makers have different plans which include doing a worldwide tour of the show that will feature a completely original cast".
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The movie made history - and not just as India's bid at the Oscars. It was also one of first movies shot with sync sound. It was something that Aamir Khan - who starred in the movie - was warned against by his friends Aditya Chopra and Karan Johar. The actor has since confirmed that his gamble paid off and now both Chopra and Johar adhere to the same set of guidelines.
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Last year, Khan spoke to media about the fun, drama and magic of being on the 'Lagaan' sets. Here’s a look at what he said.
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Khan revealed that he frequently intervened as a "referee" between director Ashutosh Gowariker and producer and his former wife, Reena, who were frequently at odds. Khan revealed on one occasion that they had to cancel the shoot despite the fact that the director had initially asked 500 people to show up for the shoot and afterwards asked more. Because of the creative decision they made, the scene turned out much better.
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In a special media interaction, speaking with reporters, Khan discussed ‘Laagan’s box-office clash with ‘Gadar: Ek Prem Katha’. “Gadar was at least three times the size of Lagaan,” he said. “So, today, I'm wondering how we managed to stay in front of the movie for so long. Gadar was a tidal wave. We wouldn't have survived if ‘Lagaan’ had been even 1 per cent smaller than it was.”
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Every day on the set of the film, Khan wondered if he had taken on too huge a project. Every day on the shoot, there were issues. The cricket portion of it seemed to go on forever. “We'd complete ten shots and Ashutosh would come up with five more; the movie was already over budget,” said Khan.
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Lagaan was one of the films nominated for the best foreign language film award at the 2002 Academy Awards. Fans back home were disappointed by the defeat. Looking back on the Oscar loss, Khan remarked that though he shared the audience's sadness, he always saw the nomination as a major achievement rather than the snub as a major setback. “What we fail to appreciate is that the members of the foreign language committee actually loved our film. If they had not loved our film we wouldn’t have reached the top 5. So that means there was nothing wrong in the film.”
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Did you know? Khan really didn’t want to do the film at first. It took director Ashutosh Gowariker a year and some, a finished script and the backing of Khan’s parents to get him to do it. In fact, once Khan had committed to the role and no producer would invest the alleged Rs250 million needed for the movie, Khan himself put himself on the line by financing things. He obviously laughed his way to the bank later.
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Another of Khan’s favourite memories is of how the Gayatri Mantra – a chant - prepared the entire unit for a gruelling day's shoot ahead. "There were things that became a habit. We would travel in a bus to the location at 4 a.m. and reach the location at 5 a.m. Every day it became a norm that for six months the 'Gayatri Mantra' used to be played. One of the actors just played it (on speaker) in the morning. It used to be dark, and we all had just woken up a while back. It had a good effect on us. There was not a single day that we missed it," he recalls.
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Khan is still in touch with cast and crew of the movie. "I am in touch with Paul, Rachel Shelley (who played Elizabeth), with all other actors. Until five months back we had a WhatsApp group. Then I stopped using a cellphone, so I'm not a part of it," Khan said.
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He also recalled English actor Paul Blackthorne who played the much-hated Captain Russell. Khan remembers Russell as a "gentle giant" off-camera, who would read out "Winnie The Pooh" to everyone. "Paul Blackthorne who played the villain, in real life he is such a sweetheart. He is a gentle giant and so soft-spoken, Khan told IANS.
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