Director Abhishek Dhudhaiya has a personal connection with Bhuj: The Pride Of India
Abhishek Dhudhaiya, whose forthcoming film Bhuj: The Pride Of India is based on incidents around the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war, is also the co-writer of the project. The film tells the story of how 300 women from a village worked hard to build the Bhuj runway, contributing majorly to India’s win.
Abhishek, who earlier directed many television shows, brings to fore the story of IAF Squadron Leader Vijay Karnic (played by Ajay Devgn) and the women from the village of Madhapar.
“My grandmother had also contributed to the making of this runway. So, I had this in mind that the first time I make a film, it will be on this subject,” says Abhishek, with a hint of nostalgia.
The sentiment of patriotism is crucial for the film. So, when Abhishek took the project forward, he knew his heart had to be in the right place.
“To begin with, I am an Indian and I am proud of that. For me, my country comes first and even for my nani, the country comes before anything else. So, when I wrote the dialogue, I conveyed what I thought and how I wanted others to act. That energy reflects in people around you,” he expresses.
“For instance when Vijay Karnic was narrating the story, the only face in my mind was that of Devgn. When I finished my story and I asked him, who does he feel is best for this role, he also recommended Devgn,” Abhishek reveals.
The next big step in the making of the film was casting 300 women. Instead of taking the regular approach of hiring junior artists, Abhishek knew that this would be an important factor in establishing the strength of the film.
“We had to cast 300 women. Now, if you hire junior artists, they are free to leave in two-three days for some other project but that breaks the flow. So, we cast 300 women and for the first 15 days taught them how to play the dhol. We got their costumes made because at that time dressing style was different and clothes affect body language a lot. So, we customised costumes for these women and made them wear them so that they get comfortable in it,” he shares.
Currently, 60 people who were part of that iconic movement still reside in the village of Madhapar, all aged between 70-80. The government of India has paid tribute to them by making their statues at the entrance of the village.
A landmark movement, the women when making the runway, decided to break their homes to get the bricks and stones for runaway once they ran out of the material.
“When they needed bricks and stones to make the runway and material could not reach them, these people decided that they would break their houses to use the bricks and stones as raw material for the runway. My nani had told me this but when everyone shared their account of that incident, I had tears in my eyes,” recalls Abhishek.
The director, whose film will release on Disney+Hotstar on August 13, feels that this kind of inspiration is rare.
“This is a kind of inspiration that you don’t find easily. The defence personnel who protect us are trained, but these villagers were not trained to do anything of that sort. Despite that shortcoming, they did not hesitate to serve their nation in any way possible and it’s their biggest achievement,” he signs off.