Few films have left as lasting an impact on audiences as ‘Gadar: Ek Prem Katha’. Released 25 years ago, director Anil Sharma’s cross-border love story combined romance, patriotism and the trauma of Partition to create one of the biggest blockbusters in Indian cinema. Starring Sunny Deol and Ameesha Patel, the film continues to resonate with viewers even today. The sequel to ‘Gadar’ which released in 2023 also did very well at the box office. As the film marks its silver jubilee, Ameesha Patel reflected on its extraordinary journey and why ‘Gadar’ remains much more than just a movie for audiences.The actor revealed that she barely had time to process the film’s phenomenal success when it first hit theatres. “When the film was becoming this big hit, it got 100% opening all over India. It was such a hectic time because in those days we used to do five films a year. So I was juggling between sets of other films and I didn’t even have time to digest how humongous a hit it had become,” she said in an interview with NDTV. Surprisingly, despite starring in the film, Ameesha never watched it on the big screen during its original theatrical run. It was only during the re-release ahead of ‘Gadar 2’ in 2023 that she experienced it as a member of the audience.”I never saw it on the big screen when it was released 25 years ago. But in 2023, when Gadar 2 was about to release, there was a re-release and I actually saw my film for the first time on the big screen. Sakeena – my most esteemed and toughest character at the time because I was so raw – who knew. It just felt surreal.”At the time, however, signing the film was considered a risky move. Fresh off the success of ‘Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai’, Ameesha was reportedly advised against taking up the role, with several industry insiders warning that it could harm her career.”I was told you’re suicidal. You’re committing suicide by doing a role like this – playing a mother, a character spanning pre-to-post independence. Then you’re a Pakistani girl, you’re out of your shorts and mini skirts and all that, and you’re covered from here to here. There’s no glamour.”Another point of discussion was the significant age gap between Ameesha and her co-star Sunny Deol. While the pairing raised eyebrows, the actor said the age difference made sense within the context of the story.”The character was justified to be older than me. So when I asked my producer, ‘Aren’t I a baby compared to Sunny?’ he said, ‘That’s exactly what we want, because Tara (Sunny Deol’s character) is almost like a father figure to Sakina. She is his baby. He falls in love with her when she’s only in school and he needs much help. So we want the age bracket to be justified because that’s the demand of the script.'”Drawing a comparison with current casting trends, Ameesha pointed out that audiences today are often less accepting of large age gaps when they appear forced or disconnected from the story.”It’s not like today, where heroes try to look younger and pair with oddly aged, non-age-appropriate heroines and the audience is not digesting it. Even then I had the mental capacity to question being age~CHECK~appropriate with Sunny. I hope it wasn’t a faux power of casting. They said no, it was the requirement of the subject. That’s why people accepted it. There were so many norms we broke with this kind of cinema.”The path to success, however, was far from smooth. Before its release, ‘Gadar: Ek Prem Katha’ faced scepticism and criticism, with some detractors even mocking it by calling it “Gutter: Ek Prem Katha”. Yet the film went on to defy expectations and cement its place as one of the most iconic and beloved blockbusters in the history of Hindi cinema.
