Gandhi My Father

THE TITLE Mahatma to Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi was bestowed on to him by none other then the great Noble laureate Rabindranath Tagore. He is also called the Father of the Nation, again a title conferred on him by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and recently the United Nations has also declared his birthday, the 2nd of October to be observed as International Day of Non-violence.

Mahatma Gandhi has been revered like God in India. Believed to be an ardent follower of secularism, how many of us are aware about the fact that Gandhi had disowned his eldest son Hiralal Gandhi.

Eldest of the four brothers, Hiralal Gandhi returned to India from South Africa to make a career of his own. He roamed in the streets of India for seven years after which he resorted to alcohol and women.Married with three children, Hiralal adopted Islam; a religion he believed would give him some kind of solace

Gandhi, My Father

Anil Kapoors next release Gandhi, My Father throws lights on all these facts, which are unknown to masses.

All set for release on August this year, Anil Kapoor has chosen Delhi as his venue to flag off the campaign for this movie.

The entire star cast which includes Akshay Khanna who plays the character of Hiralal, Shefali Shah playing Kasturba Gandhi, Bhoomika Chawla portraying Hiralals wife and Darshan Jariwala playing the role of Mahatma Gandhi will be there in Delhi on June 26 to for Kapoors debut venture as a producer. The film is being directed by Feroze Abbas Khan, a leading theatre director.

Acclaimed cinematographer David McDonald will also be there to grace the occasion.

The film gives a fascinating insight into the relationship between Mahatma Gandhi and Harilal, a relationship that hasnt been delved into much until now.

Some facts

It tells us not so much about Gandhi, the father of the nation, but a real life father to his son.

Gandhi - My Father, is said to be one of the biggest films in terms of scale and most of the principal technicians are international technicians.

The film has been shot mainly in South Africa, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Bhoir near Pune.

Darshan Jariwalla had to lose almost 20 kilos to fit into the role.