Gadar: Ek Prem Katha’ Turns 15 Today, The Film That Truly Deserved The Blockbuster Status

There’s no context of exaggeration when we use the term India's Biggest Blockbuster for Sunny Deol –Ameesha Patel starrer Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. The film that almost truly broke all box office records at the time of its release is distantly ahead of all blockbusters falling in line. On 15^th of June 2001, the Anil Sharma directorial hit theaters across the world and spread its prolific word like a wild fire overnight.

Having opened opposite an equally stiff competition like Lagaan, the film dominated box office like it was meant to be. Wrapped along an extremely weighted plotline, the film had blockbuster written all over it. It was only going to be a matter of time until the audiences were found queueing up a night before to get the tickets of the film.

Gadar holds the record of selling most number of tickets at the box office only behind Sholay. And what does it tell us? It tells us that this Sunny Deol starrer drama got more people into the theaters than any other movie in the last 40 years.

If put in a perspective, all time blockbusters like Hum Aapke Hain Koun, DDLJ and 3 Idiots are way behind Gadar if strength in terms of box office is put into account. The film arguably is the biggest film to come out of Indian cinema in the 21^st century!

Let’s take a look at what made Gadar: Ek Prem Katha earn the fate it ended up with in the long run:

Patriotism (Indo-Pak Conflict)

‘A cross border romantic saga set in the times of partition wrapped in the flavor of patriotism’, how does it sound for an idea? Appears to be one hell of a recipe to shatter records! It needed the expertise of someone like Anil Sharma who probably had better insights than anybody else to think of a movie set in those times. The patriotic angle around the film especially in 2001 did wonders to its fate. India-Pak relations weren’t going too smoothly and we had just come out of a Kargil war two years ago. An Indian hunk like Sunny Deol who obviously gives you an impression of literally making his enemies wet their pants, taking over an entire army of Pak to protect the honor of his family and his country, Gadar had to be awfully made to not find success. Fortunately enough, the film wasn’t just well made, it was FANTABULOUSLY crafted!

The Romance

Despite hardcore action and patriotism being at the core of Gadar’s enormously effective appeal, it was romance what this film was based on. The extremely innocent yet charming love angle behind Sunny and Ameesha made Gadar a perfect viewing for romantic lovers too. The film had romance infused in ways that looked very real in terms of carrying out India-Pak in 1947.

The Music

The music had a pattern. Composed by the veteran Uttam Singh, all songs of the film were sung by Udit Narayan. Back in the times, the album sold like a storm and remained popular for a number of years. Songs like Main Nikla Gaddi Leke, Udd Ja Kaale Kawa, Hum Juda Ho Gaye, Musafir Jaane Waale had all become chartbusters playing a major boost in popularity of the film.

The Dialogues

You think of Gadar and you’ll have a number of dialogues from the film to go along. Written by Shaktiman Talvar, the film was laced along with some very powerful dialogues. Here are 5 of what we feel will remain with us forever:

Ek kagaz par mohar nahi lagegi toh kya Tara Pakistan nahi jayega? Mujhe mere bachhe ko uski maa se milane se koi taqat, koi sarhad nahi rok sakti!

Aapka Pakistan zindabad hai humein isske koi aitraaz nahi, lekin hamara Hindustan zindabad tha, zindabad hai aur zindabad rahega!

Duniya janti hai batwaare ke waqt hum logon ne aapko 65 crore rupaye diye the tab jakar aapke sar par tirpal aayi thi. Barsat se bachne ki haisiyat nahi, aur golobaari ki baat karte hain aap log!

Baap banker beti ko vida kar dijiye, isi mein sabki bhalayi hai, warna aaj ye jatt bigad gaya na toh saikdo ko le marega!

Agar main apne biwi bachhe ke liye sir jhuka sakta hun, toh main sabke sir kaat bhi sakta hun!

The Trivia

The film ever since its release and success has left a legacy that fans around the world still fancy reliving. While most people are found mimicking Sunny as Tara Singh, the Hand pump scene has officially been registered as one of the most iconic moments in Indian cinema. Film’s dialogues, songs and scenes have over the years left such an impression that Gadar has found a big space in trivia.

The Box Office Hurricane

Having already mentioned, not many are aware of the kind of rampage this piece of drama had created at the box office. Selling more tickets than any other film made in the history of Indian cinema except Sholay, the film was a sensation to say the least. The significant aspect of such an immense trail of box office numbers was its domination at all the B and C centers. The film performed exceedingly well at mass dominated areas that we call the single screen janta in today’s times. The film was better than Lagaan in multiple proportions as far as box office is concerned. Adjusted to inflation, Gadar Ek Prem Katha would have made somewhere around 300 crores in India alone.

As the film completes 15 long years of iconic recognition, love and audiences support, no film has ever been able to come close to its remarkable status. The film at the tail end of Sunny’s career gave him the best role he could have asked for and gave a second blockbuster in a row for Ameesha Patel after Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai. All we can do today is thank makers of this epic cinematic creation that has given us a product that looked only to be made a blockbuster someday.