CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress / ITDC News Bhopal: Swatantra Veer Savarkar movie review: Narrating chapters from the life of a polarising historic figure is not an easy feat. Yet Randeep Hooda’s Swatantra Veer Savarkar — a biopic on Vinayak Damodar Savarkar — takes up the challenge, tries to dissect and detail the key events from his life, and serves us a three-hour long biographical film that works in parts and struggles to hook your attention for the rest. Also read | Swatantra Veer Savarkar, Madgaon Express, Arthur The King: New theatrical releases this week
Spanning over a 100 decades including both pre and post independence era starting from 1857 to 1966, the film unapologetically narrates the story solely from the point of view of its much controversial protagonist. And it doesn’t battle an eyelid while doing so, especially when mounting him as a worshipped figure with ideals that many might not have agreed with initially, but would still eventually come to terms with. As a result, Swatantra Veer Savarkar ends up being a one-sided narrative that’s not bothered about presenting a balanced outlook about the contributions made towards India’s struggle for freedom.
Premise of the film
A politician, activist and a writer, Savarkar, who propagated Hindutva and the ideology of Akhand Bharat (undivided India), believed in armed revolution to get rid of the British rule as opposed to Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violence beliefs and ideologies. However, the film doesn’t endorse or advocate the idea of violence, which was a relief.
It sheds light on the contribution and sacrifices of the armed revolutionaries that are often looked down upon as only non-violence is assumed to have contributed to India’s freedom. Using bold newspaper headlines to highlight the rise and fall of Savarkar, the motive of the film is clear — familiarise us with his early life, high points during his time in England when he joined hands with India House and Free India Society, his arrest by the British Police, time spent in the prison and his countless mercy petitions to British authorities as a political prisoner.
Randeep Hooda plays Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in Swatantra Veer Savarkar.
Savarkar’s life is so intriguing
Some called him a patriot, some referred to him a bomb ‘golavala’ who incited violence. He was accused and acquitted of multiple conspiracy theories. What makes Savarkar’s life so intriguing is his sacrifices and contribution he made to India’s freedom struggle and the film doesn’t hesitate in slowly turning pages from his life. The first half offers a great build up showing us a young Savarkar as a child devoted to his elder brother (Amit Sial) and as a grown up, extremely loyal to his wife Yamunabai (Ankita Lokhande) and as a charming and confident law student in England. Sadly, the second half nosedives both in terms of storyline and Hooda’s direction. Somewhere, he loses track and goes all the place unable to decide how to put the pieces back together.