MUMBAI: This Sunday, March 23, 2014 marks the 83rddeath anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh - one of the most influential revolutionaries of the Indian independence movement. It is one of the most prominent Hindi movies based on the Indian Independence Movement. At a time of immense political unrest, Bhagat Singh prompted the youth in India to fight for Indian Independence. He has been an idol for the youth as well as an inspiration. Zee Classic - the only Hindi movie channel dedicated to showcasing evergreen Hindi films, will air Shaheed - Produced by Kewal Kashyap and directed by S Ram Sharma, this movie was the first of protagonist Manoj Kumar’s series of patriotic films. The movie captures the traumatic life of the legendary freedom fighter.
The movie’s music by Prem Dhawan is cherished to this very day, with several songs written by freedom fighter Ram Prasad Bismil. At the 13th National Film Awards, Shaheed won the award for Best Feature Film in Hindi, the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration and the award for Best Screenplay for B. K. Dutt and Din Dayal Sharma. With heartwarming performances and an amazing soundtrack, the movie Shaheed is a must watch for a lot of reasons.
Speaking about his role in the movie, yesteryears superstar Manoj Kumar said, “It took four years’ research to prepare for the role. I visited newspaper offices and read old magazines to obtain information about the martyr. I even told my producer Kewal Kashyap, that he should make another film but he refused. I also travelled to Chandigarh in Bhagat Singh’s get-up to seek my mother’s approval and after seeing my close resemblance to Bhagat Singh, the doctors asked me to try and convince her to take her medicines. She finally relented and approved of me in the role.”
