Bahadur 120, Songs launch: Heart-warming at the second coldest place on earth

Bahadur 120, Songs launch: Heart-warming at the second coldest place on earth

They chose Royal Opera House, near Charni Road Railway Station, South in Mumbai. Sensibly, a time of 7.30 pm was indicated. If things went well, proceedings would be over by 9 pm, and the guests travelling by train or road, would have beaten the peak-hour rush. A potpourri of snacks and beverages was laid out in the compound of the once popular cinema location, owned by a royal family, and retaining its regal splendour. Most of them were too exotic to risk. Settling for good old tea and biscuits, I bumped into old friend Sarfaraz Arzu, who edits and runs the Hindustan Urdu Daily, a 90-year-old legacy. We exchanged a few thoughts. Then, we took our places, as the compère told us that it was time for action.

Excel Entertainment did it in style. Perhaps overdid it, but still in style. They had the company partners, Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar (who also plays the lead of Major Shaitan Singh, in the film), they had Dad Javed Akhtar (who has written the lyrics), heroine Raashi Kaanna, a dozen of the cast members, led by veteran Ajinkya Deo, all the music directors (five of them, for four songs) and about 10 singers (one song had four voices, but was rendered by three singers, as the fourth was absent). Also missing out was Shreya Ghoshal, who, nevertheless, sent in a video, to express her great happiness at the occasion and large regret at not being able to attend. So, towards the end, there were at least 20 Bahadur on stage, representing 120. Not bad. And everyone was given a chance to speak, which is not common.

What they said about their participation in the film and its music was gratitude personified, and all of them must be given immediate admission to the 120 Bahadur and Excel Entertainment Mutual Admiration Society. They were applauded too, in no small measure. But when everybody kept saying how great their chance to do their role or compose/sing their song, it quickly became a déjà vu. Add to that the two standard questions that the compère kept putting at each talent: 1. We are going to see it all on the 21st of November. How do you feel now? And 2. How difficult was it to for you to enact a character or compose/sing a song…then the déjà vu becomes even more déjà. Almost everyone felt blessed to work in a film made by Farhan Akhtar and to compose/ sing songs written by that 80-going-on-81 genius, Javed Akhtar. Many touched JavedSaahab’s feet.

Some interesting, humorous and informative responses came from Javed, the composers, and Sukhwinder, one of the singers. Javed Sahhab related how his experience of spending one year with soldiers during Operation Vijay, while preparing to write for Excel’s landmark film, Laqshya, had helped him get into the minds of the soldiers he stayed with. “The army is a whole world in itself. In fact, it is the most respected institution in the country.” That drew thunderous applause. All the composers: Amit Trivedi, Salim-Sulaiman and the trio Amjad -Nadeem-Aamir (the Khan brothers, nephews of composers Sajid-Wajid, and lyricists, in their own right) said almost the same things. “When we compose a tune, it is merely a body. The tunes need words and voices to become songs. So, at the tune stage, we are not sure what they will sound like, when recorded.” Singer Javed Ali, who performed live, recalled that after the song (a duet with Asees Kaur) was recorded, he felt that a one-line alaap would add to it. Hesitatingly, he suggested it to the music directors and Javed Saahab. They agreed, and Javed Saahab had written it, to come at the right place, in less than a minute.” Asees was beside herself with joy. “Now that my long-cherished dream of singing a Javed Akhtar song has been fulfilled, I can live in peace.”

Sukhwinder, who was dressed in traditional Punjabi/Sardar attire, has a wry sense of humour. When the compère asked him if he found it difficult to execute the song, he was candid. “If it was difficult, it would not have been recorded. I feel that if you apply your heart and mind to any song, it does not remain difficult.” When the compère mistakenly referred to 6’2” Sulaiman Merchant as Salim (the duo, siblings, are music directors), Sukhwinder was quick to quip, “This is Sulaiman. But while Salim is on his way, you can think of me as Sulaiman, his brother.”

Four songs were released, each one preceded by a live performance, with evocative, ‘undertoned’, costumes, excellently choreographed, with about a dozen dancers each, and with back-drops from the film often projected, to give it a real feel. At one stage, the singers and the music directors joined in, and to top it all, the whole cast and the music department, plus Ritesh Sidhwani (producer) were on stage.

They were led by director Razneesh ‘Razy’ Ghai, and included Raashi Khanna (female led), Amit Trivedi, Amit Chandrra, Subhadeep Das Chowdh, Chirag Kotwal, Utkarsh Wankhede, Sparsh, Brijesh Karanwal, Sahib Verma, Atul Singh, Devendra Ahirwar, Dhanveer Singh, Ashutosh Shukla, Digvijay Pratap, Vivan Bhatena, and Eijaz Khan. Razneesh shared that he had read about the Battle at Rezang La, in which the 13 Kumaon Regiment fought the legendary against Chinese insurgents, during the 1962 war. It was the last site of the last stand of the Charlie "C" company. “I was deeply moved, and always wanted to make it into a film. It took me five years of rejection, and then I met Ritesh and Farha. So, here we are. This is just my second film, after Dhaakad (2022). To be honest, I am very nervous.” Dhaakad was a Kangana Ranaut film that turned out to be a turnip. He would very much like 120 Bahadur to turn his luck the other way round.

Sadly, the names of the choreographer and the compere were not announced, and if they were, I missed hearing them. The compere was confident, but needed better research. The choreographer had a tough ask: composing dances for a film about war, separation, death and massacre, and amidst it all, bravery and sacrifice. Acclaimed producer-director Chetan Anand made a feature film on the 1962 conflict, released in 1964, which included the Battle of Rezang La. 16 years later, he made a serial called ParamVir Chakra, and a whole Episode was devoted to the Battle of Rezang La (also written as Lah), with Pankaj Dheer playing Major Shaitan Singh Bhati, who came from Rajasthan. I had the honour of dubbing various scenes in the series, alongside my dubbing mate, Chetan’s younger brother, Vijay Anand.

Temperatures at Rezang La hover around -7 degrees to -18 degrees, and at night, go down to -20-30 degrees Celsius. The 120 Bahadur were fighting on the 18th of November, when, it was reported, the temperature must have been around -21 degrees Celsius.

Javed Saahab summed it up nicely when he said, Films are not reality. They are not the truth. But 120 Bahadur is different. If it were to be narrated to a layman, he might feel there is nothing credible about it. But its biggest strength is that it is a true story. And it could have been nothing but the truth.” Imagine, as the voice over said, a place where even the wind fears to blow. Somebody took a jibe at the Javed Akhtar-Farhan Akhtar father-son association, and he smiled it away disarmingly, “A little bit of nepotism, in reverse, is alright, isn’t it?”