Swades
The SRK-starrer Swades (2004) is the story of a man who leaves his comfortable job at NASA and returns to India to bring about a change. Shah Rukh Khan and Ashutosh Gowariker weaved magic in this beautifully made film. AR Rahman’s soulful and mellifluous music coupled with SRK’s charisma and Gowariker’s attention to detail and superb direction. Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera instills a sense of patriotism that is unmatched in any modern song.
Range De Basanti
The Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra directorial was a multi-starrer tells the story of a British filmmaker making a documentary on Indian Freedom Fighters-Chandrashekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru, Asfaqullah Khan and Ram Prasad Bismil. The film featured an ensemble cast of Aamir Khan, Madhavan, Sharman Joshi, Siddhart Narayan, Atul Kulkarni, Soha Ali Khan, Alice Patten and Kunal Kapoor. The film was a hit amongst the youth.
Lagaan
Lagaan is set in pre-independent India, when the British imposed unbearable taxes on the villagers. One small village stands up to this injustice and challenges their rulers to a game of cricket, putting their future at stake.
Chak De! India
An ex-glorified hockey player returns to the game to coach the Indian women’s hockey team. He instils moral values and brings unity to a group of rookie players.
Lage Raho Munnabhai
Sequel to Munnabhai MBBS, the film was a fresh take on corruption and the lost ideals of our great leaders. Munnabhai, a goon with a heart of gold, takes on his friend and builder Happy Singh when he finds out that he plans to take away a house belonging to senior citizens.
Border
J.P. Dutta’s war drama based on the India-Pakistan conflict of 1971 featured Sunny Deol, Sunil Shetty, Akshaye Khanna, Jackie Shroff, Tabu and Pooja Bhatt as part of an ensemble cast. A recipient of the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration, it netted ₹ 30 crore at the box office.
The Legend of Bhagat Singh
The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002): Rajkumar Santoshi’s biographical film on the legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh earned about ₹ 6 crore at the box office. It also won national awards for best film in Hindi and for lead actor, Ajay Devgn.
Gadar: Ek Prem Katha
Director Anil Sharma’s record-shattering blockbuster was a love story set against the backdrop of Indian Partition. Starring Sunny Deol and Ameesha Patel in lead roles.