India 1857 : The British Called It The Sepoy Mutiny But For The Indians It Was The First War Of Independence.

And this is when began the epic tale of legendary hero ‘Mangal Pandey’, now recreated for the silver screen by Kaleidoscope Entertainment & Maya Movies production. Produced by Bobby Bedi & Deepa Sahi and directed by Ketan Mehta [director of Bhavni Bhavai, Mirch Masala, Maya Memsaab, Sardar], ‘Mangal Pandey - The Rising’ stars Aamir Khan, Toby Stephens, Rani Mukherjee, Amisha Patel, Kirron Kher, Varsha Usgaonkar and Habib Tanwar.

Chapter from the history of India when the first spark for freedom struggle was ignited, all of us remember having read it first in our school/college days. An exciting tale of heroism, passion and love for one’s country, how many of us are really aware about what really went into initiating this fight back? What was it that made the Indians rise up after 100 years of subjugation? Who were the people who fought back when pushed to the corner? What were the circumstances that crossed the tolerance limits of Indians who are otherwise known for high resistance powers?

Who was THE one man who started it all?

He was Mangal Pandey.

Mangal Pandey - one of the many sepoys of the 5th company, 34th Native Infantry Regiment, Barrackpore.

A man who was loyal his superiors in the army of British East India company. A man with exceptional skills and bravery at the battlefield who just turned the tables on his very own superiors when it came to the respect and sentiments of one’s fellow countrymen one’s own motherland.

And soon, he rose from “one of the sepoys” to be a Hero who challenged the empire!!

A recreation of the period from the 19th century, when British East India Company had just completed its 100 years of domination by arriving as traders and elevating to the position of rulers, ‘The Rising’ is an epic tale of friendship, love, loss and betrayal set against the backdrop of the Indian Mutiny of 1857. This was the period when British colonial rulers were plundering the country for all its worth, treating the locals unjustly and causing widespread resentment.

In the midst of this, Mangal Pandey [Aamir Khan] rescued his commanding officer William Gordon [Toby Stephens] in a battle in Afghanistan, hence setting up the basis for a strong friendship and loyalty. A friendship, that both of them thought would be everlasting, only to see it being challenged at a later time.

Challenged by not their personalities but by circumstances!

Challenges came in two directions. First with a beautiful aristocrat [Emily Kent] entering Gordon’s life and then by the introduction of controversial new gun cartridges among the troops. These gun cartridges had greased casing made of animal fat that was required to be chewed by the troops before use, hence causing widespread resentment as this was considered as an act against their religion and sentiments.

Initially the troops were ensured that cartridges were free from any animal fat. But as soon as Mangal Pandey discovered that this was not truth, all hell broke loose. Because this was not just a matter of religion and sentiments. This was much more than that.

This was about break of trust. Break of respect. Break of friendship!

And this is where Mangal Pandey rose as a rebellion. A hero who challenged the system. A martyr who wasn’t aware that he would be a legend one day.

A mutiny began that changed the outlook of millions of Indians. History was written. And India got independence 90 years after the first spark of revolt was ignited.

‘The Rising’ tells the tale of friends, lovers and enemies, exploiters and exploited, and the growth and awareness of a man and a nation. In parallel it also tells the story of Jwala [Amisha Patel] who develops a relationship of love with Gordon after he saves her from dying in a ’sati’ ritual. It also tells about Heera [Rani Mukherjee], a prostitute who is the first to make Mangal Pandey dwell deep into conscience, realize his purpose in life and motivate him to serve his motherland.

“The Rising is certainly the most ambitious project to emerge out of India. It is a historical epic with contemporary significance for the entire world” - when a director of Ketan Mehta’s stature makes such a statement, you don’t have an option but to simply believe.

With a crew comprising of writer Farrukh Dhondy, stunts director Abbas Ali Moghul, production designer Nitin Chandrakant Desai, editor Sreekar Prasad, director of photography Himman Dhamija, choreographers Raju Khan, Saroj Khan, Sandip Soparrkar, music by A.R.Rehman and lyrics by Javed Akhtar saab, one expects a once in a lifetime opportunity to watch a magnum opus like ‘Mangal Pandey - The Rising’ to arrive on big screen.

The film opens across globe on 12th August after it gets premiered at Locarno, Switzerland, Aug 3 as the opening film of the Locarno Film Festival.