Swades

About the film

Swades (transl. Homeland) is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language drama film co-written, directed and produced by Ashutosh Gowariker. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan, alongside Gayatri Joshi, Kishori Ballal, Daya Shankar Pandey, Rajesh Vivek, and Lekh Tandon.

The plot was based on two episodes of the series Vaapsi on Zee TV's Yule Love Stories (1994–95) which starred Gowariker. The story of a man setting up a micro hydroelectric project to generate electricity was reported to be inspired by the 2003 Kannada film Chigurida Kanasu which was based on the novel of the same name by K. Shivaram Karanth and Bapu Kuti by Rajni Bakshi. Story writer MG Sathya had revealed that he was swayed over by the Gandhian principles and the socio - political environment during his formative years while studying in Kannada medium school in Jalahalli, Bengaluru. The music and background score was composed by A. R. Rahman, with lyrics penned by Javed Akhtar.

Plot

Mohan Bhargava is a successful Non-Resident Indian (NRI) working as a Project Manager on the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) program for NASA in Washington, D.C. Mohan originally relocated to the United States for his higher education and chose to remain there after his parents tragically died in a car accident in India. Over time, he becomes deeply concerned about Kaveri Amma, the beloved nanny who raised him during his childhood in Uttar Pradesh. Following his parents' deaths, Kaveri Amma had relocated to an old age home in Delhi and eventually lost touch with him.

Hoping to find Kaveri Amma and bring her back to live with him in the United States, Mohan takes a few weeks of leave following the successful launch of his project's first phase. He visits the Delhi old age home, only to discover that she relocated a year prior to a remote village named Charanpur. To ensure he has access to modern amenities during his journey, Mohan rents a fully equipped recreational vehicle and drives to the village.

Upon arriving in Charanpur, Mohan reunites with Kaveri Amma and reconnects with his childhood friend, Geeta. He learns that Geeta brought Kaveri Amma to live with her family after Mohan's parents passed away. Geeta runs the local village school and works tirelessly to improve the community through education, though her efforts are constantly hindered by deep-seated caste segregation and religious biases. Geeta initially resents Mohan's presence, fearing he will take Kaveri Amma away and leave her and her younger brother, Nandan, isolated. Kaveri Amma informs Mohan that she cannot leave until she fulfills her responsibility of securing a suitable marriage alliance for Geeta. Drawn to Geeta’s progressive ideals regarding women's empowerment and gender equality, Mohan decides to assist her by actively campaigning for the education of girls and marginalized lower-caste communities. He quickly befriends two locals, Nivaaran and Mela Ram, who join his advocacy, earning the respect of the benevolent village chief, Dadaji.

Production

Swades is inspired by the story of Aravinda Pillalamarri and Ravi Kuchimanchi, the non-resident Indian couple who returned to India and developed a pedal power generator to light remote, off-the-grid village schools. Gowariker spent considerable time with Pillalamarri and Kuchimanchi, both dedicated Association for India's Development (AID) volunteers. He supposedly visited Bilgaon, an Adivasi village in the Narmada valley, which is the backdrop of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) movement. The people of Bilgaon are credited with doing 200 person-days of shramdaan (community service) to make their village energy self-sufficient. The Bilgaon project is recognised as a model for replication by the Government of Maharashtra.

The film was reported to be inspired by two episodes of the series titled Vaapsi on Zee TV's Yule Love Stories (1993–95). The story of the lead role setting up a micro hydro electric project to generate electricity was reported to be inspired by the Kannada novel Chigurida Kanasu by K. Shivaram Karanth and Bapu Kuti by Rajni Bakshi.

Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson, Tushar Gandhi, noted the theme of Gandhism in the film. The name of the main character portrayed by Shah Rukh Khan is Mohan, which was Gandhi's birth name (Mohandas or "Mohan"). The film opens with the quotation:

Soundtrack

The song "Dekho Naa" is a modified version of the song "Kichchu Tha" from the film, Baba (2002). The song "Aahista Aahista" is set in raag Charukesi.

On 27 March 2021, members of United States Navy Band sang "Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera" for Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the Ambassador of India to the United States and United States Navy Chief of Naval Operations at a special dinner event. The video of the band members singing surfaced on Twitter and received praise and nostalgia from Shahrukh Khan, A. R. Rahman and netizens alike.

The Tamil soundtrack under the title Desam was composed by A.R. Rahman. All Lyrics were written by Vaali. According to the Indian trade website Box Office India, with around 13,00,000 units sold, this film's soundtrack album was the eleventh highest-selling of the year.

Reception

The film received universal critical acclaim and went on to become a cult classic, and Khan's performance as Mohan Bhargava is considered one of his best to date.

Key details