On 2nd October, two great leaders of India were born. One is the first President of India, Mahatma Gandhi, and the other is our very own brave politician, Lal Bahadur Shastri, who served as the 2nd Prime Minister of India. If you look at both the leaders, they were small, made with lean bodies and were ordinary-looking personalities, but they both protected the country and took some strong actions. When Pakistan attacked India, an ordinary personality, Lal Bahadur Shastri, most unassuming, took a stand that taught Pakistan a lesson for a lifetime.
His slogan was ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kisan,’ nurturing the soldiers and the farmers while he protected the country, he wanted his slogan to reach out to every corner of India then called Bharath and to ensure that the slogan reached out to the masses he sought help from film producer and actor Manoj Kumar whom he once invited to Delhi and told to make a film based on soldier and farmer. Manoj Kumar was more than willing and happy to do this film, and he immediately wrote the script and presented the film ‘Upkar.’
When Lal Bahadur Shastri Watched ‘Upkaar’
For the film’s premiere, Manoj Kumar invited Lal Bahadur to watch the film. Lal Bahadur accepted the invitation but told the actor/producer that he would watch the film only for 10 minutes as he had many other urgent and more important tasks that he had to look into. He reached the premiere of the film ‘Upkaar’ and started watching the film. Manoj Kumar’s film ‘Upkar’ earned widespread acclaim, winning numerous awards, including the National Film Award and several Filmfare Awards. Director, Best Actor and Best Script and Writer, Screenplay, Best Dialogue, to name a few.
The film was at the top spot at the Box office in the year 1967 and happened to be Manoj Kumar’s directorial debut film. Lal Bahadur Shastri inspired Manoj Kumar to create the classic film ‘Upkar’, a box office hit celebrating India’s farmers and soldiers.
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