Kannan Iyer has done an excellent job adding another patriotic film Ae Watan Mere Watan to the list. The amazing cast of the film has won us over with their brilliant on-screen presence. This film talks about the sacrifices that the revolutionaries made to see a free India. Sara Ali Khan has left us speechless, playing the role of Usha Mehra, an unsung hero who has sacrificed her life to propagate Congress Radio to influence the people and push them to seek freedom during the Quit India Movement. The film brings to the forefront the undying will of the revolutionaries, whose sacrifices have ensured our freedom.
Usha Mehta
Sara Ali Khan has done an excellent job of playing the character of Usha Mehta in the film. Usha’s undying love for her nation has been a significant factor driving her life since her childhood. She never backed off from her struggles to rid the nation of British rule and even went against the ideals of her own father, who was a supporter of the colonizers himself. She believed that the love for her nation was greater than any other bond, and she didn’t even hesitate to leave the comfort of her home for her motherland. Usha had sacrificed her personal life to support her country, giving up on her relations with her father and her boyfriend (taking an oath of celibacy). As an active supporter of Congress and a staunch supporter of Mahatma Gandhi, she had a ‘do or die’ attitude.
Usha had come up with the idea of Congress Radio and given it a shot to make it a success. Through the radio, she wanted to ignite a spirit of freedom among her countrymen. She did not give up on the radio channel when the British were on their lookout for broadcasters. She knew that the consequences of being caught could be dire, yet she did not give up on the cause of her nation. Usha wanted to do the last broadcast, despite knowing that she would be tracked down by the police. She did not say a single word about Lohia, despite being tortured in jail. Her thirst to be a free bird and explore the world might not have been satiated, but her determination to rid the nation of the tyrannical British Raj was undying. Upon her release from jail after 4 years, more than 20,000 people gathered to welcome her, highlighting the number of lives she had been able to change through her broadcasts.
Fahad
Sparsh Srivastav, in the role of Fahad, is one of the significant contributors to the film’s narrative. He had resigned from the Muslim League just to support the Quit India Movement. When asked why he had left the league, he said that he didn’t want a separate nation but a free country. Fahad stood beside Usha all the while and supported her single-handedly when she had nobody else by her side. Kaushik had asked Fahad to take care of Usha when Usha asked him to leave, and Fahad did good by his promise. Fahad didn’t want Usha to carry out the final broadcast, as he knew that it could be a danger to her life. He was a true friend and a patriot indeed, who wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice his life for Usha or his country. Being affected by polio, he said that he had never been able to feel complete all his life but wanted to feel complete at least once by conducting the last broadcast.
Kaushik
Abhay Verma, in the role of Kaushik, has been a supportive friend who had one-sided feelings for Usha. He had been Usha’s greatest supporter and never failed to stand by her side in whatever decision she took. More than being interested in politics, he was interested in keeping Usha safe. He was hurt when she took the oath of celibacy, but somehow he managed to accept her decision and respect it. He immediately left when Usha told him that he was a barrier in her path, asking Fahad to take care of her. However, he finally returned to protect Usha when he realized that her life was in danger. He finally got arrested for running the Congress radio station alongside Usha. Whatever perils Kaushik had decided to take up was only for the love of his life.
Some Supportive Characters
- Ram Manohar Lohia: Emraan Hashmi has played the role of Ram Manohar Lohia in the film. He played a historical figure who was a renowned Congressman and had strongly opposed the British. When he learned about Congress Radio, he decided to make it a joint effort to help them reach a wider audience.
- Justice Hariprasad: Sachin Khedekar, in the role of Justice Hariprasad, had been a supporter of the British Government as he had been given a high rank by them. He thought that the British were advanced in their manners and were much ahead of his own people. He was completely opposed to the ideals of his daughter, Usha, and made her promise to stay out of the affairs of Congress. However, when he tried imposing his ideals upon her, she fled the house. It was not until Usha had been imprisoned that her father realized the tyranny of the British and started opposing it.
- Bua: Madhu Raja in the role of Usha’s bua may not have been an active supporter of the national movement, but she helped in whatever little ways she could. When she overheard Usha, Fahad, and Kaushik discussing ways to collect 4000 rupees to buy a radio station, she gave up her jewels to help them get the station. She was a silent supporter of the Congress and would regularly listen to Usha’s broadcasts.
- Antara: Aditi Sanwal, as Antara in the film, has played the role of a revolutionary in the film. She had been standing by Usha till the time she had not brought up the topic of Congress Radio. Right at the moment Usha brought up the idea, she said that she did not want to get hanged.
- Bhaskar: Pratik Yadav, in the role of Bhaskar, is a revolutionary who also left Usha’s side when she brought the idea of Congress radio to the table.
- Firdaus Engineer: Anand Tiwari, in the role of Firdaus Engineer, is the man who helped Usha set up her radio station. Later, he was tracked down by the police for helping run the Congress radio. Upon being caught, he informed the police about the whereabouts of the station.
- Julie: Chrisann Pereira, in Julie’s role, has played Firdaus’ wife.
- Kamble: Manoj Diwakar, as Kamble, is a police constable who is a patriot and wants to secretly contribute his small shares against the police. He would inform the Congress members about any forthcoming dangers and the plans of the British.
- Inspector John Lyre: Alex O’Nell, in the role of Inspector John Lyre, was put in charge of finding out who was running the Congress radio. He had thought of several strategies to detect the signal of the transmitters, trying to hunt down the ones operating the Congress radio. He was extremely cruel and would not think twice before crushing the rebels under his feet.
- Lieutenant Roy: Garrvil Mohan, as Lieutenant Roy, had been assisting John Lyre in the triangulation process to detect the signals of the Congress radio and trace the patriots.
- Lieutenant Dhar: Abhishek Patel, as Lieutenant Dhar, was another assistant of John Lyre in the triangulation process.
