#IndependenceDaySpecial: 7 Bollywood movies that redefined the concept of freedom

Javed Akhtar, the renowned poet and lyricist, had once said that “All Hindi films come from Mother India”, and we couldn’t agree more. The film that released just a decade after India gained independence was a milestone in more ways than one. Showcasing a poor, widowed mother who fights all the odds in the world for her children’s upbringing but ends up killing her own son when he treads on the path that she detests, the movie made the world sit up and notice the power of independent India’s cinema for the very first time. Sketching the image of an ideal Indian lady, the film told us how we sometimes have to be free from love and relationships for the greater good.

The movie stars some of the best actors of Indian cinema, so it has to be one of the most well-executed films of India, but Mirch Masala, which had Smita Patil, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Deena Pathak, Ratna Pathak, Supriya Pathak, Deepti Naval, Benjamin Gilani and Suresh Oberoi, was much more than just that. It was about women’s self-found freedom from being objectified; it was about the spice that women are, which can either turn the simplest of food into an eating marvel, or can burn your very eyes and tongue.

The movie that we all have seen more than once, tells us how freedom is also about being free from the boundaries that the society has imposed upon its women. A group of girls, who have resolved to bring their country pride, fight against all odds and manage to do so; and that too from under the wings of a coach who was questioned for his loyalty towards the country because of his religion. That way, Chak De! India is also about being free from religious prejudices and appreciating a person for who s(he) is.

It had been long that we felt patriotic on days other than 15^th August and 26^th January, but thanks to Rang De Basanti, we all realised that deep down, we all love our country and can sacrifice anything for it. RDB didn’t only talk about your love for your country though; it also talked about how you have to be free from the shackles of bureaucracy and democracy to do what’s right.

Probably the most underrated movie of the recent times, this little gem by Vikramaditya Motwane doesn’t fall short on anything. The script, the screenplay, the performances and the direction, everything that can make a movie spectacular is there in Udaan. The movie tells you to be free from what the society has planned for you, and follow what you have planned for yourself.

Religion is one of the most important facets of the Indian society, and the movie talks of it like never before. The movie touched and transformed several people who watched it, because it told us all to be liberated from the orthodox rituals of the society that we undertake in order to please the creator. If that’s not freedom, what is?

The latest marvel to have come out of Bollywood is this little jewel, which is to be treasured for long. The movie asks you to celebrate life, death, and everything that there is in between. Starring Richa Chadda, Vicky Kaushal, Shweta Tripathi and Sanjay Mishra, and directed by Neeraj Ghaywan, this movie talks about how sometimes, we need to be free from everything, including ourselves, so that something better can happen to us.