Gandhi Jayanti 2021: 5 movies on Mahatma Gandhi to watch today

Gandhi Jayanti 2021: Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who is fondly known as Mahatma Gandhi and Father of the nation was one of the important leaders during our freedom struggle. He is famous all over the world for his non-conventional methods of fighting injustice. His philosophies of non-violence, civil disobedience and strong willpower which were also reflected in his movements aided in India’s freedom.

Many filmmakers around the world have tried to bring his life to the big screen. Today, on the occasion of his birth anniversary, we have listed some of the movies that are either based on him or inspired by life principles and important times from his life. Read on to know more.

Gandhi Jayanti 2021: Check out the list right below:

Gandhi (1982)
Oscar award-winning Gandhi is a period biographical film based on the life of Mahatma Gandhi. And this is one of the famous movies on Gandhi. The movie was a co-production between India and United Kingdom and was directed and produced by Richard Attenborough. For the unversed, Ben Kingsley played the role of Gandhi. The movie also starred Indian actors like Amrish Puri, Om Puri and Saeed Jaffrey. Rohini Hattangadi plays Kasturba Gandhi, Mahatma’s wife.

2. Nine Hours to Rama (1963)
The movie is a neo-noir crime film directed by Mark Robson, that follows a fictionalized account of Nathuram Godse who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi. The film revolves showcases nine hours of Nathuram Godse’s life before he assassinated Gandhi. While JS Casshyap played the role of Gandhi, Horst Buchholz portrayed the character of Nathuram Godse. The movie was based on a 1962 novel of the same name by Stanley Wolpert.

3. The Making of the Mahatma (1996)
The Shyam Benegal directed film explored the life that Mahatma Gandhi had during his stay in South Africa where he was practicing as a barrister. For the unversed, Rajit Kapur, who was roped in to play the role of young Gandhi, won a national award for his performance. The movie is based on the book The Apprenticeship of a Mahatma, by Fatima Meer.

4. Gandhi, My Father (2007)
This Bollywood movie is quite different from the other movies that have been made on Mahatma. The Anil Kapoor produced movie followed the troubled relationship between Mahatma Gandhi and his son. It showed how despite being the ‘Father of the nation’, he couldn’t be a good father to his son Harilal Gandhi. While Darshan Jariwala played Gandhi, Akshaye Khanna portrayed the role of Harilal Gandhi. Apart from Gandhi’s role in the freedom struggle, some important facets of his personal life were shown too. The movie went on to win three National Film Awards.

5. Hey Ram (2000)
In the movie, Naseerudhi Shah had played the role of Bappu. Interestingly, Shah had auditioned for the role of Gandhi in Attenborough’s film but eventually, Kingsley was roped in. The movie showcases the time of India’s partition and the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. The movie didn’t do well at the box office. However, it was India’s official entry to the Oscars in the Best Foreign Film category in 2000. Kamal Haasan was the writer, director and producer of the film.

Other movies that are based or inspired or had Gandhian principles are Sardar (1993), Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara (2005), and Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar (2010).

Also Read: Mahatma Gandhi’s words of wisdom on B-Town’s mind

Did you watch any of the movies on Gandhi? Are you planning to watch any on this Gandhi Jayanti 2021?