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By:

Rajeev Puri

24 October 2024 at 5:11:37 am

Before Sholay, there was Mera Gaon Mera Desh

When the comedian and television host Kapil Sharma recently welcomed the veteran screenwriter Salim Khan onto his show, he made a striking claim. India, he joked, has a national bird and a national animal; it ought also to have a national film. That film, he suggested, would surely be Sholay. Few would quarrel with the sentiment. Released in 1975 and directed by Ramesh Sippy,  Sholay  has long been treated as the Everest of Hindi popular cinema -quoted endlessly, revisited by generations and...

Before Sholay, there was Mera Gaon Mera Desh

When the comedian and television host Kapil Sharma recently welcomed the veteran screenwriter Salim Khan onto his show, he made a striking claim. India, he joked, has a national bird and a national animal; it ought also to have a national film. That film, he suggested, would surely be Sholay. Few would quarrel with the sentiment. Released in 1975 and directed by Ramesh Sippy,  Sholay  has long been treated as the Everest of Hindi popular cinema -quoted endlessly, revisited by generations and dissected by critics. In 2025, the film marked its 50th anniversary, and the release of a digitally restored, uncut version introduced the classic to a new generation of viewers who discovered that its mixture of revenge drama, western pastiche and buddy comedy remains curiously durable. The film’s influences have been debated almost as much as its dialogues – from scenes taken by the Spaghetti westerns of Sergio Leone, particularly ‘Once Upon a Time in the West’ (1968) or to the narrative architecture of ‘Seven Samurai’ (1954) by Akira Kurosawa. Others note echoes of earlier Hindi films about bandits and frontier justice, such as ‘Khotey Sikke’ (1973) starring Feroz Khan. Yet, rewatching ‘Mera Gaon Mera Desh,’ directed by Raj Khosla, one cannot help noticing how many of the narrative bones of  Sholay  appear to have been assembled there first. Released in 1971,  Mera Gaon Mera Desh  was a major hit at the box office, notable for holding its own in a year dominated by the near-hysterical popularity of Rajesh Khanna. The thematic framework of the two films is strikingly similar. In  Sholay , the retired policeman Thakur Baldev Singh recruits two petty criminals - Jai and Veeru - to help him avenge the terror inflicted upon his village by the bandit Gabbar Singh. In  Mera Gaon Mera Desh , the set-up is not very different. A retired soldier, Jaswant Singh, seeks to protect his village from a ruthless dacoit and enlists the help of a small-time crook named Ajit. Even the villain’s name seems to echo across the two films. In Khosla’s drama, the marauding bandit played by Vinod Khanna is scene-stealing performance is called Jabbar Singh. In  Sholay , the outlaw who would become one of Indian cinema’s most memorable antagonists was Gabbar Singh. There is an additional irony in the casting. In  Mera Gaon Mera Desh , the retired soldier Jaswant Singh is played by Jayant - the real-life father of Amjad Khan, who would later immortalise Gabbar Singh in  Sholay . The connective tissue between the two films becomes even clearer in the presence of Dharmendra. In Khosla’s film he plays Ajit, a charming rogue who gradually redeems himself while defending the village. Four years later, Dharmendra returned in  Sholay  as Veeru, a similarly exuberant petty criminal whose courage and irrepressible humour make him one half of Hindi cinema’s most beloved buddy duo alongside Amitabh Bachchan as Jai. Certain visual motifs also appear to have travelled intact. In Khosla’s film, Ajit finds himself bound in ropes in the bandit’s den during a dramatic musical sequence. A similar image appears in  Sholay , where Veeru is tied up before Gabbar Singh while Basanti performs the now famous song ‘Jab Tak Hai Jaan.’ Other echoes are subtler but just as suggestive. Ajit’s pursuit of the village belle Anju, played by Asha Parekh, anticipates Veeru’s boisterous attempts to woo Basanti, portrayed by Hema Malini. Scenes in which Ajit teaches Anju to shoot recall the flirtatious gun-training sequence between Veeru and Basanti that became one of  Sholay ’s most cherished moments. Even the famous coin motif has a precedent. Ajit frequently tosses a coin to make decisions - a flourish that would later appear in  Sholay , where Jai’s coin toss becomes a running gag. Perhaps most intriguingly, the endings of the two films converge in their original form. In  Mera Gaon Mera Desh , the villain is ultimately killed by the hero. The uncut version of  Sholay  reportedly ended in a similar fashion, with Gabbar Singh meeting his death at the hands of Thakur Baldev Singh. However, censors altered the climax before the film’s 1975 release, requiring that Gabbar be handed over to the police instead. All this does not diminish  Sholay . Rather, it highlights the alchemy through which cinema evolves. The scriptwriting duo Salim–Javed took familiar ingredients and expanded them into a grander narrative populated by unforgettable characters and stylised action. On the 55 th  anniversary of  Mera Gaon Mera Desh , Raj Khosla’s rugged western deserves a renewed glance as the sturdy foundation on which a legend called  Sholay  was built. (The author is a political commentator and a global affairs observer. Views personal.)

Parents, Wake Up!

Updated: Oct 21, 2024

Memories of horrific incidents like the Nirbhaya case in Delhi will always remain unforgettable. Unfortunately, similar tragedies continue to be reported in both urban and rural areas across all states, without exception. Incidents of gang rape involving young girls from scheduled castes or scheduled tribes occur. Some cases involve individuals who deceive girls under false identities and then rape them. Often, these perpetrators record these horrific acts, blackmail the victims, and even subject them to repeated assaults. There are instances of girls being coerced into marriage. Their refusal leads to their murder and their bodies disposed of in a remote place.

Parents, Wake Up!

Investigations reveal that many of these acts are committed by juveniles aged 16 -18. In addition to gang rapes, rapes, dacoities, and murders, there are reports of juveniles involved in rash and drunk driving in luxury cars, often resulting in the deaths of innocent pedestrians and two-wheeler riders. These incidents invariably provoke public outrage, with a demand for an explanation from law enforcement and questioning the government’s effectiveness in addressing these issues. Often, public anger escalates to demands for the immediate execution of the accused, even if the suspect is a juvenile. Data compiled by the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) from all states reveals an increasing number of incidents involving juveniles aged 16 to 18 as suspects. According to the Juvenile Justice Act (JJA) 2015, a person below the age of 18 is considered a juvenile. The JJA stipulates that minors aged 16 – 18 be treated as adults when involved in heinous crimes. Heinous crimes are those offenses that warrant punishment for more than seven years.

Several factors contribute to juvenile delinquency, including the absence of care and affection from parents due to division in the family, large families, and poverty. Urbanisation and easy access to the internet expose children to inappropriate and pornographic content. Advertisements, TV/OTT serials, and cinemas also have an adverse impact. In red-light areas, children are often forced out during business hours, leading them into bad company and the use of illegal substances. Additionally, adolescent boys may steal to impress their friends and meet their needs.

Analysis of undertrial juveniles reveals most come from deprived backgrounds, having dropped out of school or attended irregularly. Lacking education and vocational skills, many work as casual labourers. Due to dysfunctional families, these children lacked mental or social support. Their family situations involved poverty, forced child labour, inadequate parenting, continuous stress, or crises like death, desertion, etc. Moreover, NCRB data shows that drug addiction is leading to an alarming rise in serious crimes among children from affluent families.

Although these children might have broken the law, police officers must remain sensitive to their circumstances. As the Commissioner of Police in Nagpur, I ensured they received counselling and school enrolment, if eligible. Others received vocational training, helping them become responsible individuals contributing to their families’ income. The police should seek action from the Juvenile Justice Board against the parents of such children and safeguard them from adult offenders who might coerce them into crime. Collaborating with voluntary organisations, child psychiatrists, child guidance clinics, social care workers, and probation officers is crucial to address the root cause of juvenile delinquency. Efforts should be made to identify at-risk, destitute, and neglected children before they become delinquent. Regular patrolling in urban areas prone to delinquency should be organised.

My initiatives for recreational programmes, like sporting events, holiday camps, and band displays created enthusiasm and engagement among the community.

(The writer is a former DGP, Maharashtra. Views personal )



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