Lagaan: Once Upon A Time in India
Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India, or simply Lagaan(transl. Land Tax), Ashutosh Gowariker directed and wrote the 2001 Indian Hindi-language epic period musical sports drama Land Tax. The film was produced by Aamir Khan, who stars alongside debutant Gracy Singh and British actors Rachel Shelley and Paul Blackthorne. The film is set in Central India in 1893, during the late Victorian era of British colonial rule in India.
It follows the residents of the village who are burdened by high taxes and several years of drought. An arrogant British Indian Army officer challenges them to a game of cricket as a wager to avoid paying their taxes. The villagers face the arduous task of learning a game that is alien to them and playing for a victory.
Produced on a budget of ₹25 crore (US$5.3 million), Lagaan was the most expensive Indian film at the time of its release. It faced multiple challenges during production: Khan was initially skeptical to star in a sports film, and later, prospective producers called for budget cuts and script modifications.
Eventually, the film would become the maiden project of Aamir Khan Productions, and mark Khan’s foray into film production. Gowariker was inspired by aspects of sports drama Naya Daur (1957) in developing the film. The language featured in the film was based on Awadhi, but was diluted with standard Hindi for modern audiences. Principal photography took place in villages near Bhuj. The costume designer was Bhanu Athaiya, and the art director was Nitin Chandrakant Desai. A composed the original soundtrack. R. Rahman, with Javed Akhtar writing the lyrics.
On June 15, 2001, Lagaan was released theatrically in India alongside Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. The film’s anti-imperialist stance, Khan’s performance, dialogue, soundtrack, and direction by Gowariker were all praised by critics. The film was the third highest-grossing Hindi film of 2001, earning a total of 65.97 crore (US$13.98 million) at its initial release. Lagaan received numerous awards after being shown at numerous international film festivals.
It was the third, and as of 2024 the last, Indian film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film after Mother India (1957) and Salaam Bombay! (1988). With eight wins, including Best Film, Best Director for Gowariker, and Best Actor for Khan, Lagaan became the film that received the most awards at the 47th Filmfare Awards. The movie won eight awards at the 49th National Film Awards, including Best Popular Film.
Plot
In spite of poverty and erratic harvests brought on by drought, the farmers of Champaner in the British Central India Agency live under an oppressive and racist regime and pay land tax (lagaan). Unable to bear the burden, they ask the king, Raja Puran Singh, for relief from lagaan.
A cricket match between British officers is being watched by the king. Later, when Andrew Russell, the regiment’s captain, meets with the villagers, he suggests playing a cricket match against his team. If his team wins, the villagers would be exempt from lagaan for three years, but if they lost, they would have to pay triple the usual tax. A young farmer named Bhuvan accepts Russell’s wager, and the match is scheduled to take place after three months.
Preparations for the match start slowly, as Bhuvan fails to unite the village in believing they have a chance. The few players who have enlisted for his team, try unsuccessfully to learn the game. Russell’s sister, Elizabeth, who is visiting from England and who empathises with the farmers, offers to coach Bhuvan’s team.
Although one of the players, Lakha, secretly plots with Russell to play against his own team, Bhuvan gathers the necessary eleven players to compete in the match. Russell, on the other hand, is chastised by senior officers for gambling with the regiment’s funds. He tries to stop Elizabeth from coaching the rival team, but she keeps going because she’s secretly in love with Bhuvan. Bhuvan, who is courting Gauri, the daughter of the village doctor, is unaware.
The match is to be played over three days outside the cantonment grounds. On the first day, the British elect to bat (see: rules of cricket), and are aided by Lakha’s sabotage and inexperience of the locals, in putting up a good score. That night, farmers learn about Lakha’s betrayal from Elizabeth.
They attack him but Bhuvan stands in his defence. Lakha redeems himself the next day by playing exceptionally, triggering a British collapse that ends their innings at 322, still a formidable score. The locals’ innings starts with promise, but they lose almost all their best batters early. Bhuvan steadies the innings on the third day. In the final over, he hits six runs off the last ball to win the match for his team. Coincidentally, dark clouds gather in the sky and it begins raining heavily, signalling an end to the drought. The locals celebrate wildly, and Elizabeth catches Bhuvan and Gauri embracing amidst the crowd.
Following the defeat, Russell is relocated to Central Africa and the provincial regiment is disbanded. Elizabeth was thanked by the villagers for her guidance and she is bided farewell by them. She chooses to return to England, where she lives her life unmarried, rather than reveal her feelings for Bhuvan. Meanwhile, Bhuvan marries Gauri in a grand ceremony blessed by Raja Puran Singh himself. Even though Champaner’s victory was beneficial to the entire province, no record of the event exists.
Cast
Credit – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagaan#Cast
- Aamir Khan as Bhuvan (captain and all-rounder)
- Gracy Singh as Gauri
- Rachel Shelley as Elizabeth Russell
- Paul Blackthorne as Captain Andrew Russell
- Suhasini Mulay as Yashoda Maa, Bhuvan’s mother
- Kulbhushan Kharbanda as Raja Puran Singh Chawla
- Rajendra Gupta as Mukhiya Ji, the village chieftain
- Raghubir Yadav as Bhura (slip fielder)
- Rajesh Vivek as Guran (all-rounder)
- Raj Zutshi as Ismail (batsman)
- Pradeep Rawat as Deva Singh Sodhi (all-rounder)
- Akhilendra Mishra as Arjan (batsman), the blacksmith
- Daya Shankar Pandey as Goli (seamer), the man with the largest piece of land
- Shrivallabh Vyas as Ishwar (wicket-keeper), the vaidya (doctor) in the village and Gauri’s father
- Yashpal Sharma as Lakha (batsman), the woodcutter
- Amin Hajee as Bagha (batsman), the mute drummer
- Aditya Lakhia as Kachra (spinner)
- Javed Khan as Ram Singh, an Indian who works with the British and helps Elizabeth in translating the villagers’ language
- A. K. Hangal as Shambu Kaka
- Amin Gazi as Tipu
- John Rowe as Colonel Boyer
- David Gant as Major Warren
- Thor Halland as Captain Roberts
- Jeremy Child as Major Cotton
- Chris England as Lt Yardley, an English fast bowler. England also wrote a book about his experience making the film titled Balham to Bollywood
- Howard Lee as Lt Burton, English wicketkeeper batsman
- Ben Nealon as Lt Patrick Smith, Deputy and English all-rounder
- Simon Holmes as Lt Brookes, an English batsman
- Ray Eves as Lt Willis, an English fast bowler
- Jon House as Lt North, an English batsman
- Neil Patrick as Lt Harrisson, an English all-rounder
- Jamie Whitby Coles as Lt Wesson, an English all-rounder
- Barry Hart as Lt Benson, an English spinner
- Travis Head as Lt Flynn, an English batsman
- Amitabh Bachchan as narrator
Our General Review
Alright, buckle up for a wild ride through the dusty fields of *Lagaan*, the Bollywood epic that’s basically *The Lord of the Rings* meets cricket with a side of colonial sass. Directed by Ashutosh Gowariker and released in 2001, this nearly four-hour extravaganza is the cinematic equivalent of a spicy curry feast—you’re stuffed, sweaty, and somehow still want more. Let’s break it down with a grin and a giggle.
First off, *Lagaan* is set in 1893 in a fictional Indian village called Champaner, where the locals are getting squeezed harder than a lemon in a juicer by the British Raj. The villainous Captain Russell (Paul Blackthorne, rocking a mustache that screams “I twirl this in my sleep”) demands double the *lagaan* (tax) from the drought-stricken villagers. Why? Because he’s a jerk with a side of extra jerk sauce. Enter Bhuvan (Aamir Khan, with eyes so sparkly they could guide ships at sea), a plucky farmer who’s like, “Yo, Captain, how about we settle this with… a cricket match?” Yes, cricket. Because nothing says “revolt against colonial oppression” like a game involving tea breaks and silly mid-offs.
Now, let’s talk about the audacity of this premise. Bhuvan, who’s never seen a cricket ball outside of maybe mistaking one for a really hard mango, convinces his ragtag village crew to challenge the Brits to a match where the stakes are sky-high: win, and they’re tax-free for three years; lose, and they pay triple *lagaan*. It’s like betting your house on a game of Uno with zero practice. The Brits laugh so hard they nearly choke on their scones, but they agree because, plot twist, they think it’s a done deal. Spoiler: it’s not.
The humor in *Lagaan* isn’t just in the dialogue (though the banter is spicier than a chili-eating contest); it’s in the sheer absurdity of watching a bunch of villagers learn cricket from scratch. Bhuvan recruits a team that’s less *Ocean’s Eleven* and more *One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest*. There’s Kachra, the spinner with a disability who bowls like he’s casting spells; Lakha, the village traitor who’s sneakier than a cat in a yarn shop; and Guran, a wild-eyed astrologer who swings the bat like he’s auditioning for Thor. Watching them fumble through cricket drills is like seeing your grandma try to use TikTok—adorably chaotic.
Aamir Khan as Bhuvan is the glue holding this circus together. He’s got the charisma of a motivational speaker at a pyramid scheme convention, rallying his team with speeches that make you want to run through a wall (or at least try to hit a six). His chemistry with Gracy Singh as Gauri, the village sweetheart, is so wholesome it could cure a bad day. Their romance subplot, complete with flirty eye contact and a song about spinning wheels (because, Bollywood), is like a warm hug from your mom.
Meanwhile, Elizabeth (Rachel Shelley), the captain’s sister, falls for Bhuvan too, creating a love triangle stickier than mango chutney. Poor Elizabeth tries to help the villagers learn cricket, which is like teaching a goldfish to ride a unicycle, but she’s sweet about it.
The music by A.R. Rahman is a whole mood. From the foot-tapping “Chale Chalo” to the romantic “Radha Kaise Na Jale” (where Krishna mythology gets a spicy remix), every song feels like a mini-movie. The choreography is so vibrant you’ll wonder if the dancers have extra joints. Sure, the songs stretch the runtime like a rubber band, but they’re so catchy you’ll be humming them in the shower for weeks.
Now, let’s get to the cricket match, which takes up the last hour and feels like the World Cup, the Super Bowl, and a soap opera finale rolled into one. Gowariker directs it with the intensity of a war movie—every ball bowled is a life-or-death moment. The villagers face googlies, betrayals, and injuries, while the Brits play dirty (shocker). The tension is so thick you could cut it with a butter knife, and the crowd’s reactions are louder than your uncle at a family barbecue. I won’t spoil the ending, but let’s just say it’s the kind of climax that makes you want to high-five everyone in the room, including your couch.
Is *Lagaan* perfect? Nah. It’s long enough to bake a cake and eat it during the runtime. Some subplots, like Lakha’s double-crossing, feel like they were added just to give the editor a headache. And yeah, the Brits are cartoonishly evil at times—Captain Russell might as well have a sign saying “I’m the Bad Guy.” But these flaws are like finding a tiny seed in your biryani—you shrug and keep eating.
What makes *Lagaan* a riot is its heart. It’s about underdogs sticking it to the man, with enough humor to keep you chuckling (like when the villagers think a cricket bat is for whacking laundry). It’s also a love letter to Indian culture—vibrant, defiant, and bursting with spirit. By the time the credits roll, you’re exhausted but grinning like you just hit the winning run yourself.
So, grab some popcorn (or samosas), settle in for the long haul, and let *Lagaan* sweep you away. It’s a hilarious, heartfelt epic that proves cricket can be more dramatic than a reality TV reunion. Just don’t challenge your boss to a match to get out of taxes—you’re not Bhuvan.
People Review (Taken from google)
