Screenwriter Kumar Dave has revealed that the iconic Bollywood film "Lagaan" struggled to find support due to its unconventional subject and could only be made after Aamir Khan joined as both actor and producer. Set in 1893, the story revolves around an Indian village suffering from severe drought and high colonial taxes. To clear their debts, the villagers accept a high-stakes cricket wager from an arrogant British Army officer. Aamir Khan plays the young farmer Bhuvan.
Aamir Khan's Crucial Role
"If Aamir wouldn't have turned producer, this movie wouldn't have been made even today. He believed in this as an actor and hence he believed in it as a producer," Dave told PTI in an interview. "We never found a producer who believed in our subject. People used to say, 'Make it contemporary, why are you making the hero wear a dhoti? He should be in a suit,' etc." Dave, who also served as an associate director on the film, co-wrote the screenplay with Sanjay Damya from a story by Ashutosh Gowariker, who also directed. The dialogues were by K P Saxena.
25th Anniversary Reflections
The film is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its release this month. Dave admitted he too had reservations about the subject from a practical standpoint. "I never doubted the subject from day one. Even though I tried to run away from it from a practical point of view, that we wouldn't get a producer," he said. Dave had previously worked with Gowariker as third assistant on "Pehla Nasha" and chief assistant on "Baazi." "I knew the content was strong, it has a message about the hero swimming against the tide. You need courage to do so, and the character has to be courageous. You need courage to say, 'Sharat manjoor hai', it's a golden line. Once we committed, we went into it completely, we didn't back down from our responsibilities," he added.
Initial Doubts and Persistence
At one point, Dave tried to dissuade Gowariker from pursuing the film due to its scale and uncertainty of finding a producer. "I remember Ashutosh said, 'We will write Lagaan.' I tried my best to stop him from making it, saying, 'Don't make this. We've already tried something new with Pehla Nasha and Baazi but things didn't work, so don't make the third film, instead do something very contemporary. This is a very international film; it will be very difficult to get a producer for this subject,'" Dave recalled. "Even though I would tell him, 'Let's not do it,' he would insist saying, 'Let's do it.' I would tell him that the strong belief you have in your subject is good, but you need a producer who will believe in it equally. He was adamant about it."
Intensive Writing Process
The trio of Gowariker, Dave, and Damya eventually went to Karjat near Mumbai, where they spent weeks developing the screenplay in isolation. Dave described the writing process as intense and immersive, with discussions starting as early as 8:00 am and continuing through meals. Only at the very end of the night did they manage a brief 10-to-15-minute break for a quick game of carrom before sleeping. They wrote a total of 12 drafts during their month-long stay. "Ashu had the story and we went along with him to work on the screenplay. We knew that there are three different minds working on the film but we will go with the majority," Dave said.
Cast and Production
"Lagaan" featured an ensemble cast including Gracy Singh, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Raghubir Yadav, Rajendra Gupta, Raj Zutshi, Akhilendra Mishra, Yashpal Sharma, AK Hangal, Shrivallabh Vyas, Pradeep Rawat, Rachel Shelley, and Paul Blackthorne. After Aamir came on board, filming began in Bhuj for six to seven months. The production officially kicked off on January 5, 2000 at 11:00 AM with a muhurat shot featuring Suhasini Mulay as Bhuvan's mother, Yashodamai. The scene shows her looking at the sky and responding to an off-screen question from Aamir's character about what she is watching, simply saying, 'I'm looking at the clouds.'
Overcoming Challenges
Dave noted that the team never felt overwhelmed by the scale of the film because they had mentally braced themselves from the beginning. "We knew from day one that it was a difficult task, so when you know that every scene or shot is difficult, you put in that kind of preparation. Like, we shot with sync sound technique, and we had to wait in between some scenes when a flight would pass by as that would create disturbance," he said. "Besides, we shot in extreme heat and winter conditions. We knew it is going to be challenging and the idea was to just overcome it." Dave credited Aamir's production team for ensuring a smooth shoot despite the challenges. "Aamir Khan's production team was mind-blowing; everything was taken care of. Sometimes there can be ego clashes between artists and technicians but on this movie, nothing of that sort happened. The entire unit worked as a real unit."
