Patriotic films on Indian celluloid have inspired people about the sacrifice and hardships that the freedom fighters went through in order to free India from the British. Freedom struggle, as a result, gave birth to a large number of films in the patriotic mode including a couple of offshoots that seemed pro-British. Popular in the years from 1940s to 1960s, this genre resurfaced during the 1980s-90s. It was particularly owing to the fact that India was celebrating her 50th year of independence in 1997.One of the most famous patriotic films was Gyan Mukherjee's ‘Kismet’ (1943), which became the first blockbuster in the history of Indian Cinema and whose anti-German and anti-Japanese songs became hysterical all over India. In 1952, it was Hemen Gupta, a Bengali director who made ‘Anand Math’, based on a novel by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. It dealt with the 18th century revolt against the British led by a "sanyasi" (ascetic). In 1953, ‘Jhansi Ki Rani’ released, directed by Sohrab Modi and set in the backdrop of the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857, dealing with the bravery of queen Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi, who took up arms and led her army against the British, one of the first Indians to do so.
In 1959, Padmini Pictures of Chennai released ‘Veerapandia Kattabomman’, a Tamil spectacular epic fairytale, directed by B. R. Panthulu on the legendary heroic warrior Veerapandiya Kattabomman. Sivaji Ganesan enacted the titular role of this 18th century South Indian chieftain who rose to rebellion against the East India Company. The film won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil. The same director also made another epic film ‘Kittur Chennamma’, in Kannada released in 1961. The film showcased the Indian freedom fighter Kittur Rani Chennamma, portrayed by B. Saroja Devi who led an armed rebellion against the British East India Company in 1824 and died in captivity in 1829.
In 1964, Chetan Anand and Navketan Films made ‘Haqeeqat’, featuring a host of recognised actors like Balraj Sahni, Vijay Anand, Sulochana, Dharmendra and others. Dealing with an incident during the Indo-China war of 1962, it went on to win the National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film in 1965. Another significant patriotic film was ‘Shaheed’ (1965) by S. Ram Sharma, with all popular patriotic songs. The film showcased the contribution of the revolutionaries Bhagat Singh, Jai Rajguru and Sukhdev during the struggle for independence.
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