Udham Singh: Up, close & personal

Nonika Singh

A hero, a revolutionary of the Ghadar party, a freedom fighter, a patriot who assassinated Michael O’ Dwyer the former lieutenant governor of the Punjab; whichever way you look at Shaheed Udham Singh, you can’t take away heroism out of him. Ritesh Shah, writer of the film Sardar Udham Singh, insists, “Nor is it our objective.”

Only, as the Shoojit Sircar directorial on the martyr is in the making, Shah, who along with co-writer Shubhendu Bhattacharya, is busy making the patriot come alive, giving him body and flesh, the idea is not to make a typical revolutionary film.  Shah says, “We are trying to get into the mind and heart of Udham Singh. With greater empathy, not just skimming on the surface, the portrayal will be more internal than external summation of cold facts. Moreover, it would certainly not be a jingoistic cry.” Digging deep into the finer print, they do not intend to seek refuge under disclaimers or distort facts in the garb of historical fiction either. 

Shah adds, “How can you exaggerate incidents or characters and allow factual veracity to become a casualty”. That is precisely why, though he has tackled real subjects before as in hugely successful Batla House, he considers Sardar Udham Singh the toughest project on his platter. Not only is the research ongoing, there is constant checking and rechecking of references. Of course, the fact that today feathers are easily ruffled and there could be zillion interpretations of the film, too, is a discomfiting thought.

Shah shares, “Indians have always taken cinema seriously. Only, today, thanks to proliferation of social media, their analysis is getting projected on a bigger scale. Often, we writers and directors wonder; did we really mean to say this? Though we try not to get unduly perturbed, at a subconscious level may be certain reactions and perceptions do seep in.” 

However, at the end of the day he writes what he truly believes in. Having a co-writer on board makes things easier, if not exactly a smooth sail. Of course, cinema is essentially a director’s vision. Yet writers, he deems are important collaborators whose significance is being slowly but surely realised. “There is no film without a script and confident directors like Shoojit only do what is best for the film and keep the communication channels with writers wide open. During the making of the film we often talked to each other more than we would with our spouses,” he says.

As they bring us Udham Singh — up, close and personal, he promises, “The film will bring you closer to the man, his journey and what he had seen replete with the ethos of that era.” Though much has been written on Udham Singh’s revolutionary zeal, what struck Shah was his sensitivity and perseverance. As Shah is also the dialogue writer and a huge fan of punchlines, the USP of many a blockbusters, he does not discount the potency of one-liners. But Sardar Udham Singh would be sans dialogue baazi; more real, evocative, expressive and lyrical as is Shoojit Sircar’s wont. With Vicky Kaushal fitting the part like a glove, “a perfect match,” and a director in whom Shah has tremendous faith, he assures, “You can only expect something truly special.”

Meanwhile, his own inimitable writing abilities would lace three big films Ajay Devgn’s Maidan, Kangana Ranaut’s Dhaakad and Abhishek Bachchan-starrer The Big Bull. Writers might be tempted to turn directors, but in an industry where they are in short supply, he would rather capitalise on the demand and supply equation that right now is working in his favour. Besides being a writer makes him privy and participant in the creative process of so many gifted directors from whom there is so much to learn from. Like Paul Schrader says, “Screenplays are not works of art. They are invitations to others to collaborate on a work of art.”