An Indian soldier, who took nine bullets in the 1965 war and lost both his legs, went on to win his country its first ever medal at the Paralympics in Heidelberg, Germany, in 1972.
Murlikant Petkar was awarded the Padma Shri in 2018, but not many people outside the Indian Army knew of him. Chandu Champion, starring Kartik Aaryan, tells his story buried in the dusty pages of history.
Its director, Kabir Khan, could hardly believe a man of this grit and calibre could even exist. "It was shameful that we as a nation did not know of this man who had done us so proud early on after independence," said Khan. "I drove to his residence in Pune to see him in flesh and blood.
I was convinced that his story had to be told." Khan had directed 83, the story of Kapil Dev's cricketing glory, but the soldier story posed a different challenge. Unlike with the Indian captain, there was no real video record of Petkar's past. Khan gave Aaryan notes of his meeting with Petkar, and the actor transformed himself. So poignant is Aaryan's depiction that our lasting memory of the unsung Petkar is the actor himself. He, in fact, met Petkar only after the shoot was done.
Denne historien er fra June 30, 2024-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
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Denne historien er fra June 30, 2024-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
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Chase For The Mace
The next three years throw up a gamut of challenges for Indian cricket; winning the World Test Championship is the most important
Two-horse race
Can the NC-Congress alliance reshape the future of Jammu and Kashmir?
Man-eaters don't spare women
Critics say Narendra Modi’s decade-long rule has been one of jobless growth. Factories produced more, companies earned more, owners profited more, the government earned more; but fewer hands were hired, or those who were hired got work for fewer days. Putting the last two together, economists said the Indian economy generated fewer ‘man-days’.
Decolonising the mindset
The vision of a Viksit Bharat hinges on India T breaking from the shackles of a colonial mindset and embodying the freedom of being unapologetically Indian. The laws of any nation are the cornerstone of its growth. The legal system offers the stability and adaptability essential for a country to thrive. The laws must be simple to understand and specific in their consequence.
The making of India's Mr Difficult Words
When my publishers at Aleph invited me to put together a book on words and language, I hesitated for a brief moment.
Couture's creepy corridors
If one is spending a summer in New York, any summer in New York, an absolute must-do is to spend an afternoon at the city’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, on the edge of Central Park, just gawking in gobsmacked awe at the annual fashion exhibition the museum’s Costume Institute puts together.
Stree 2 has given us hope
The unprecedented success of Stree 2 is the best news we have had in the recent times and with an unabashedly feminist agenda, has comprehensively out-performed Sandeep Reddy Vanga's toxic masculine star-studded Animal at the box office is (to me, at least) kind of the cinematic equivalent of Awadhesh Prasad winning Ayodhya-it redeems my faith in the inherent decency of Indians.
BRANDS BEYOND RAMPS
Whether through carpets, fragrances or home interiors, Indian couturiers are defying their own limits
RESERVOIR OF WORRIES
India has a robust dam management systém on paper, but inadequate maintenance and climate change pose serious threats
INTER-STATE ISSUES HAVE NO EFFECT ON DAM SAFETY
INTERVIEW: KUSHVINDER VOHRA INTERVIEW Chairman, Central Water Commission
